Let Love In

Garrett pecked a quick kiss on Noah’s lips before they ran on stage, leaving Riley, Noah, and Colin to watch the show side-stage with Max and Tim. As he sauntered around the stage, John kept sending smirks and glances over toward them, smiling and bringing the energy up. Noah watched as Garrett bounced around on stage, the banter between John and Garrett light and fun, as it should be. Noah could feel a hot breath against her neck, and she turned around to see Colin standing right behind her. Anxiety mixed with butterflies exploded through her insides as he leaned down to place a soft kiss against the back of her neck. They were blocked by the speakers so no one from the stage could see him, but that didn’t prevent a blush from forming across Noah’s cheeks as she watched Garrett interacting with the audience. Colin tugged on her hand, pulling her farther behind the speaker while no one was watching.

“Colin, what the fuck—” His lips cut her whisper off again, an action that was quickly becoming predictable, yet still catching her off guard. Noah found herself kissing him back this time, her head telling her to stop while her heart melted into him. Noah’s mind went wild, going a mile a minute while she felt his burning skin press into her, the taste of his lips against hers, their rapid breathing lost in the noise around them. The music cut out and a cheering spread through the crowd as John spoke into the mic. Despite her desire to continue, Noah willed herself to push Colin off of her and take a step back. “Colin. A-are you still with, um, with Sarah?” Noah tried to steady her breathing, staring at Colin, her eyes darting from his lips to his eyes.

“I-I don’t know anymore. You’re still with Garrett though, so what does it matter?” Colin pulled her into another kiss, and despite her better judgment, she kissed him back again, melting into his kiss all over again.

“N-no. Stop.” Noah pulled herself back to reality, and shook her head, taking a step back. “Th-this isn’t fair to any of us. Just, ugh. Colin…” Noah looked into his eyes for a moment, her tone wavering and barely audible by the time his name left her lips. “Figure out whatever the hell this game is you’re trying to play and then come find me.” She left him standing there without waiting for a response, returning to her spot next to Riley, Max, and Tim several feet away.

Riley turned to her friend, giving her a questioning look as Noah returned next to her, avoiding her gaze and muttering an “I’ll tell you later…” before turning her focus back onstage. Garrett sent her a smile from on stage as he jumped back from his speaker toward the crowd, slapping his bass along with the music. Noah plastered a smile to her face as her heart sunk, trying to push Colin out her mind and focus on Garrett. The guys strummed their final chords, and jogged off stage as a roar broke through the crowd. Garrett handed Aaron his bass and made his way through the group standing side stage looking for Noah. His bright blue eyes glistened in the lighting, him drenched in sweat from working hard on stage. He pulled her into a hug, giving her a sweaty kiss on the cheek. Noah slipped her hand into his as they pulled apart, the two walking side by side down the stairs and back toward the dressing room. They had to stick around until after the show so the boys could meet their fans, but John promised Riley and Noah that they would only be out for a half hour or so, even if he had to have Max come collect them. Tim came in to address the remaining set times and to map out a plan for the rest of the evening. They voted to go out for a late dinner on the strip, shooting to leave the venue by eleven if they could help it. With that, everyone went their separate ways until the show was over, some heading back side stage to see the headliner play, while others chose to freshen up in the adjoining bathroom. Riley and John had disappeared, and Noah could only imagine where they’d ran off to.

Garrett squeezed Noah’s hand, sending her a smirk as he stood from the couch, pulling her up with him. He sent a nod to the others, claiming they were wandering and would be back later. Garrett quickly led them back to the empty dressing room, pulling her closer to him as they walked down the hallway. Garrett pulled them into the room, shutting the door and kissed her up against the wall. Noah pushed all thoughts of Colin out of her mind, frustrated that he was confusing the hell out of her, and focused on Garrett’s lips against her skin, savoring the moment. Garrett’s hands quickly roamed, heading right back to the same familiar places they were a couple hours earlier. Their shirts were quickly discarded as they fell onto the familiar couch, falling right back into where they left off. He kissed her neck, focusing on a spot he tended to favor, sending a shiver down her spine as his hands found their way back toward the fabric of her bra. The two struggled to keep their volume down as their breathing turned shallow, mixed with a few low moans and groans here and there. The lacy fabric fell from Noah’s shoulders and slipped easily off her arms, falling somewhere onto the floor off to the side. Garrett’s fingers grazed against her skin, making their way toward her waist and soon tugged at the fabric of Noah’s jeans, playing with her belt buckle. A smirk found its way onto his lips, and Noah could feel it against her own lips, running her fingers through his hair again, subconsciously nodding slowly in response.

Garrett wasted no time in taking control of the situation, choice words slipping from his lips in between kisses as they became entangled in each other. “Hhhhnnggnnuuuhhnffnuhhhh” became the only audible word between them as Noah closed her eyes, focusing on every movement between them. It was over all too soon; the two laid there, squished together on the small couch, steadying their breathing before either found the words to break the silence. Garrett’s arm wrapped around Noah, pulling her close to him so each lay on their side, giving them slightly more room. He buried his face into her neck, breathing deeply against her skin and holding her close to him. Noah smiled softly in response, brushing her fingertips against his shoulder in small circles.

“We should probably get back…” Garrett whispered against her skin, sending a shiver down Noah’s spine as she felt a soft kiss being placed against her collarbone between each word. Noah let out a contented sigh as she mumbled an “I guess if you need to,” into his ear, slowly rolling over to untangle herself from him. They redressed themselves in silence, Garrett running his eyes over her as she adjusted her shirt and ran some fingers through her messy hair. He pulled her into a soft kiss before lacing their hands together.

“Noah, I, uhh…” Garrett exhaled, his sentence trailing in the silence as he stared at their hands. “Um, I, uhh, I, look, about before…” Noah waited patiently for him to continue, her stomach slowly twisting into knots as she remembered the last time they were together, quickly killing her otherwise euphoric mood. “I didn’t mean to be so rude about my tattoo before, I just, I don’t really like talking about it. It’s nothing to do with you, I just don’t. A-and someday, w-when I’m ready to talk about it, uhh, yeah. I just, I-I’m sorry I came off that way. I don’t really let people in that easy.”

“Oh. Um, okay.” Noah whispered and nodded lightly, wondering why he was bringing this up, the knots in her stomach far from settling.

“Hey,” Garrett touched Noah’s chin, pulling her gaze up to meet his. He smiled at her softly before pulling their lips together. “I like you. A lot. Like, a lot, a lot. I don’t just hook up with girls like that, okay? You mean a lot to me.”

Butterflies moved in to smooth out the knots in Noah’s stomach as Garrett kissed her again, this kiss stronger than the previous one, pulling her back into a better mood.

“After the signing, we’ve got the whole rest of the night to ourselves and we’ve got most of the day off tomorrow too before we have to get back on the road. I’m really glad you’re here, Noah. Really, I am.” A final peck on Noah’s lips brought a smile to both of their faces as Noah nodded in agreement and curled into his arms for a hug before they walked back toward the main dressing room down the hall.