Into Your Icy Blues

The next morning, Jade woke up in a better mood. She wasn't going to let something as small as a hug ruin the friendship she could have with Frank, she decided.

Crawling out of her bunk, she slid on a hoodie that she hoped was her brother's and made her way to the front of the bus. As she reached the small kitchen, she smelled coffee. Smiling, she made her way over to the large pot. Grabbing a cup out of the cupboard, she poured herself some before sitting herself in the loveseat. Curling her legs under her, she turned her eyes to the TV.

"Morning," she was greeted by Ray who had just noticed her.

"Morning Ray. Morning Frank," she acknowledged. Frank seemed a bit surprised, but smiled pleasantly at her.

"Good morning Jade."

The three spent the next hour watching some old western movie on TV and sipping their coffee. Slowly, the others began to stumble from their bunks.

Fifteen minutes after the last people (Gerard and Eliza) had joined them, the bus pulled to a stop outside of a small diner.

"Looks to be empty," their driver reported as he opened the doors.

"Good," someone muttered. The group, all still clad in their pajamas, made their way into the restaurant.

Every once and a while after that day, Jade would glance up and find her eyes locked with Frank's. At first he would immediately look down and a small blush would cover his face. Today however, he kept his eyes on hers.

Rolling her eyes, Jade looked back down to the magazine in her lap, her eyes briefly landing on the jeans on her legs. After several moments of thought, she realized she had no idea whose they were. She had long since run out of her own clean clothes, and was now borrowing that belonging to various other people. Her selection wasn't very big. Out of the band, Mikey’s and Ray's were too long, and she had a hard time keeping Gerard's and her brother's around her waist. She would never even consider asking Alicia to borrow clothes, Jamia didn't seem to like her very much, and Eliza only had so many jeans she could lend her. So these could either be Eliza's, or Frank's.

Wincing, she hoped they were Eliza's. Though she was civil to Frank, she avoided talking to him unless she had to. This morning, though, she had just pulled on the first clean pair she found on the floor.

She would ask someone whose they were later.

And when the next time they were stopping at a Laundromat was.

"Jaaade," a voice sang out. Turning, she saw a grinning Ray standing in the doorway of the room she was in. In his hand was her beat up Sidekick. "Your thingy made a noise."

"…my thingy?"

"Phone, Sidekick, whatever," he waved it around for a second before tossing it at her. Barely catching it, she scowled at him before turning to it and flipping it open.

Jadey-poo, it read you’ve dropped off the face of the earth .D: I dropped by your apartment earlier and it was empty (dropping by may or may not have included me digging out the spare key). Have you been kidnapped?!

Jade had trouble fighting the smile off her face. With a roll of her eyes, she began typing a response.

Jamesy. Sadly, I have not been kidnapped. Unless you consider being dragged across the country bound and gagged being kidnapped. Which, it would be, but I have not been. Kidnapped, that is. Bob talked me into touring with the band for a few weeks. I'm not sure where we are or when I'll be back, but do not fret; I am alive and well. Although, I'm not really sure whose jeans I'm wearing at the moment.

James was one of her few friends back home. He worked with her at the photography studio back in Chicago and apparently had not been told that she was taking a few weeks off. They got along perfectly, and he was one of the few people she felt she could trust.

Jade, Better find the owner then, huh? Hoping they were clean when you put them on? Have fun with your band boys and I'll see you when you decide you get tired of sharing a bus with stinky boys. I miss you, doll.

Smirking, she sent him one final text.

Jamesykins. They were, I checked. Will do. Miss you too.

Flipping the phone closed, she looked up to see almost every pair of eyes in the room on her.

"What?" she huffed, raising her hips so she could stuff the device in the back pocket of the jeans.

"Boyfriend?" Ray wondered.

"No. Why?" her eyes were narrowed as she turned to look at him. He shrugged.

"The text was from a "Jamesy-poo." Bob snorted from somewhere in the room.

She blinked a few times before falling into a pit of laughter.

"What?" Ray demanded. She continued laughing. Scowling, he marched over to her and lifted her off of the couch and up into the air so that they were face-to-face. "What?" he repeated. She shook her head.

“Don’t worry about it.”

He scowled slightly as je dropped her back onto her spot on the couch. She kicked him in the shin as he walked away. He turned around slowly to glare at her. Suddenly he was back in front of her and poking her incessantly. Squealing, she grabbed a pillow from before her and attempted to beat him off. His scowl turning into a smirk, he began tickling her.

"No!" her legs began to kick up until she felt someone sit on them. Someone that was not Ray. Suddenly, the torture ceased.

"Whose jeans are these, Jade?" Ray wondered, pulling lightly at one of the belt loops.

"Good question," she responded in a serious voice. He continued to stare at her, apparently expecting an answer. "I don't know," she explained, flicking him lightly on the nose. Grinning, he pushed the body off of her legs before picking her up bridal style.

"Anyone know whose these are?" he shouted, holding her up a bit so everyone could see her. Scowling, she began to twist and turn in his arms, trying to escape. When she realized her attempts were fruitless, she huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

"I think they're girl jeans," Mikey offered from where he sat across the room. Bob let out a laugh.

"So they're not mine or Toro's," he smirked. He and Jade were the only ones that seemed amused by this.

"I think they're mine."

Jade's jaw clenched a bit. Ray attempted to read the label on the inside of the pants.

"Hey! No molesting my sister," Bob was over to them in a second to scoop her out of Ray's arms. Ray and Jade merely shrugged.

When she was set back on the ground, she attempted to read the label herself. Rolling his eyes, Bob quickly grabbed it from her and skimmed over it.

"Which one of you pansies wears a size zero?"

"Pansy." Several snorts could be heard, Bob's included.

"Who else?"

Jade blinked. "Why are we so focused on whose jeans I stole- uh, borrowed?"

"I better get those back," Frank warned pointing a finger at her.

"I don’t know," she tugged at them lightly. "They're pretty comfortable." No sooner had she finished her sentence, she was tackled to the floor of the bus. Frank's face was a few centimeters from hers.

"What was that?"

"I said, they're pretty- stop, stop!" He had begun tickling her.

She was still squealing with laughter and trying to push him off a minute later when several sets of footsteps enter the room.

"Frank?" He immediately jumped to his feet as Jamia made her way into the room. Her eyes narrowed as Jade hoped back onto the couch and she grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the bunk, already hissing in his ear. Her eyes wandered over to the doorway wear Gerard and Eliza stood, both had their eyebrows raised. She winced and grabbed a random magazine from the coffee table to hold in front of her burning face.

From the next room, muffled yelling could be heard.