On the Verge

As soon as she arrived at the restaurant, she regretted it. She hadn’t even told Piper that she was having dinner with him, because she knew that Piper would yell at her. But, because she was weak, Micah was now stuck having dinner with Cain. He had texted her earlier that day, while she was in the studio, and asked her to dinner. She didn’t respond to his text right away, and thought over it for nearly an hour before agreeing to meet him for dinner.

The last two days had been uneventful. John was still trying his hardest to get in her pants, but thankfully he was rather subtle about it. Garrett seemed to only talk to her when no one else was around. While Garrett would hardly talk to her, Micah couldn’t get Em to leave her alone. Not that she minded Em, she actually liked her a lot, but there just wasn’t an off switch.

Micah had arrived to the restaurant before Cain and rolled her eyes in annoyance. She headed over to the bar and slid onto a bar stool, careful to prevent her dress from riding up. She flashed her ID to the bartender and ordered a martini. She toyed with the ring on her finger absentmindedly as she waited for her drink.

The bartender finally set the glass down on the cocktail napkin in front of her and she took a sip, reaching for her phone at the same time. Her lipstick had left a red smudge on the rim of the glass and she frowned, answering a text that Piper had sent her.

Cain showed up a moment later. He was wearing a jacket and tie, and he hadn’t shaved. He approached her at the bar, laying a five dollar bill down to pay for her drink. “The maitre d’ just informed me that our table’s ready,” he said, leaning in close to her. His hand was placed on the small of her back. She nodded, picking up her martini before sliding off the stool. Cain’s hand remained on her back, guiding her.

He pulled the chair out for her when they reached the table and ordered the house wine, knowing that she was fond of it. She looked over the menu, resisting the urge to kick off her heels and curl her feet under her. Their wine arrived and Micah ordered the salmon and Cain ordered the fillet mignon.

Micah noticed Cain watching her as she took a sip of wine. “Y-you look, uhm, really nice tonight,” Cain told her, stumbling over his words cautiously. Micah smiled, a blush spotting across her cheeks.

“Thanks,” she said, licking her lips nervously.

“I’m really glad we’re seeing each other again,” he said, reaching across the table and lacing his fingers through hers. She mentally sighed, pulling her hand away.

“We’re not seeing each other again. We’re simply making amends for the past, I thought you knew that,” Micah explained, pressing her lips together. Her palms were becoming sweaty and her pinkie twitched nervously.

“Yeah, I do. I just -- it came out wrong, that’s all,” he assured her, taking a drink of wine. Micah noticed that his own hand was shaking a bit. She nodded and an awkward silence flooded over the table.

After that, things got tense. Micah tried to make small talk and Cain replied with only sarcasm. It pissed Micah off quickly, and when he made a snarky comment about obviously not getting laid that night, she got up and left. Cain chased after her as she left the restaurant before their entrees had even arrived. He said that he was only kidding, but they both knew that he hadn’t been. When the valet pulled up with Micah’s car, Cain realized that she was completely serious about leaving. He cursed at her before rolling his eyes and walking back into the restaurant.

Micah climbed into the car, her ears pink with frustration. She put the car in drive and peeled out of the valet turn around like the devil himself was chasing her. She merged onto the busy street and it struck her that she had nowhere to go.

The idea of going home to her empty suite made her stomach churn. She thought about calling Piper, but knew that Piper would only yell at her for even speaking to Cain. Chewing on her bottom lip and approaching a familiar intersection, she put her blinker on to go right. All of a sudden, she had a craving for black cherry ice cream, which she knew was Jonah’s favorite. She stopped at a gas station and bought a half gallon of Toft’s Sweet Black Cherry ice cream.

Micah got strange looks as she approached the register, still in her $500 dress and $600 red pumps. She blushed pink as she paid for her six dollar purchase with her debit card, not having any cash on her. She thanked the Hispanic man behind the counter and picked up the ice cream carton before leaving the gas station. She got back into her car and continued down the street towards her father’s studio. It was dark by then, nearly nine o’clock at night. The street lights were on, casting a shadow.

Jonah lived in one of the houses that the studio owned, only a block away from the studio itself. There were four houses, usually reserved for bands recording at the studio. They were fully furnished with full kitchens and numerous bedrooms. Jonah lived in the smallest of the houses, but he still had more than enough room. Hannabeth lived with him.

Micah parked in the lot in while all people staying in the studio houses parked and her stomach sank when she saw Hannabeth’s car. The last time she had talked to Jonah, he had said that she would be out of for a while. She hadn’t thought that by ‘for a while’ he’d meant only a few days. She sighed, leaning back against the cool metal of her car. She searched for her phone, resorting to calling Piper to come over in twenty minutes.

Her attention focused on her phone, she jumped when she saw something move out of the corner of her eye. “W-who’s th-there?” she stuttered, taking a defensive stance. The parking lot was dark and she could barely make out any details of her surroundings.

“Micah, is that you?” a familiar voice asked, peeking out from around The Maine’s van parked two spots over from Micah.

“Garrett, holy fuck, you scared the living shit out of me,” Micah gasped, realizing who was near her. She had her hand against her chest and she could feel her heart racing.

“I, uh, I was getting something out of the v-van,” Garrett explained, pointing his thumb over his shoulder to the white van behind him. “What are you doin’ here?”

“I was going to go over to Jonah’s, but bitchface is there. I bought Jonah’s favorite ice cream and I was going to surprise him...I’m just going to go,” she told him, rambling a bit. She was reaching for the door handle of her car door when Garrett stopped her.

“What kind of ice cream is it?” he asked, shoving his hands into his pockets.

“Uhh, black cherry, why?” Micah responded skeptically.

“You, uhm, want to come in for a bit? We’re w-watching some m-movies, and some ice cream might be nice,” Garrett said, making eye contact with her, then looking down at the pavement.

Micah smiled. “The guys wouldn’t mind?”

“John almost called you earlier to invite you, but that obviously didn’t happen,” he said with a shrug and an awkward laugh. Micah only nodded, locking her car before taking the steps towards Garrett.

“What have you guys been watching?” she asked as they walked together towards the house.

“We just finished the last Star Wars movie, now Em’s trying to get us to watch some Disney movie,” Garrett explained. From his tone, Micah was sure that he was rolling his eyes. “Why are you all d-dressed up?”

“I met a friend for dinner,” she said with a scoff. “I didn’t even stay for dinner. He pissed me off and I left before I even ate anything.”

“‘He?’”

“My ex, Cain.” Garrett only nodded, reaching around her to pull open the front door of the house.

Micah stepped into the foyer of the studio house and kicked off her heels, letting them join the pile of shoes that had accumulated on the mat beside the door. The cool wood flooring felt good on her feet through the thin holes of her tights. She breathed a quiet sigh of relief from having her heels off. The ice cream was still in her hand and she padded into the kitchen to set it on the counter, her hand frozen by then.

“Hey, guys, look who I found roaming the parking lot,” Garrett announced to the rest of the band as he entered the living room from the kitchen, brushing past Micah. The other four guys and Em quickly turned their heads to the kitchen where Micah was still standing.

“I was not roaming the parking lot,” she assured them, rolling her eyes. “I came to see my brother, but Hannabeth is there and I don’t feel like seeing her, so Garrett invited me in. And, I have ice cream.”

At the mention of ice cream, everybody leaped off the sofa and the spots on the floor to make a mad dash for the kitchen. Em hugged Micah excitedly and thanked her for saving her from spending the entire evening alone with the guys. Micah laughed, and opened the carton of ice cream as Jared got bowls out of the cabinet.

Before scooping her own bowl of ice cream, Em pulled Micah aside, dragging her back to one of the bedrooms.

“You’re going to be uncomfortable if you’re wearing that dress and tights for the rest of the night,” Em said, searching through her suitcase. She handed her a tank top. “This should fit. It’s a bit tight on me, and you’re a size smaller, so yeah. It might be a bit tight across the chest though. Uhm, you need pants, and all of mine would be big on you. Hang on a sec.”

Em slipped out of the room and Micah looked around. The walls were a dark grey and the wood floors were continuous throughout the house. There was a queen sized bed against the back wall of the room, the blankets and sheets thrown around haphazardly. Both Em and Kennedy were living out of their suitcases, not even bothering to unpack their bags. Micah felt awkward, standing in the room. She toyed with the tank top in her hands.

Em returned a few seconds later with a pair of black Nike basketball shorts. “They’re Garrett’s, so they might be a bit big, but they’ll work.” She shrugged, handing Micah the shorts. “I’ll uh, let you change.”

When Em stepped out, Micah changed out of her dress and tights, instantly feeling her body relax. She pulled on the borrowed clothing. Em was right, the top was extremely tight across her chest, coming down extremely low as a result of that. She crossed her arms across her chest self consciously, trying to pull the collar up. She tied her hair back into a bun, not feeling like dealing with it.

She padded back into the living room where the guys and Em were arguing over movie choices. To her delight, there was a bowl of ice cream on the counter for her. She picked it up with a smile, grabbing a spoon. Returning to the living room, she weighed her seating options.

Em and Kennedy were on the love seat, Jared and Pat on the floor, while Garrett and John were on the sofa, a spot between them. Not wanting to sit on the floor, she took the seat between Garrett and John feeling them both shift instantly. She curled her feet under her as she took a bite of her ice cream, observing the movie argument.

“We always watch Disney movies, Em,” Garrett said harshly, rolling his eyes. “Why can’t we watch a fucking zombie movie for once?”

“Because I don’t like blood!” Pat interjected from his spot on the floor. Garrett grumbled something under his breath before reaching for his bowl.

“And don’t you hate on Disney movies!” Em exclaimed, looking appalled.

“Uhm, guys, why don’t we let Micah pick?” Jared suggested. “She’s the guest, after all.”

“Works for me,” Em shrugged, looking to Micah, who had just taken a bite of ice cream.

“Yeah, Micah, you pick,” Pat said, turning around to face her with a wide smile.

“I, uh, haven’t seen The Lion King in quite a while,” Micah said rather softly. Her cheeks were pink from being put on the spot. Em’s smile widened, as did Pat’s, but Garrett rolled his eyes again before giving her a quick smile.

Em put the DVD in and when the movie started, all seven of them attempted to sing the beginning of The Circle of Life, and they all ended up hunched over, laughing.

There was soon a stack of empty bowls on the floor beside Pat and John had scooted closer to Micah. By I Just Can’t Wait to Be King their legs were touching. When Mufasa’s death scene came around, John noticed the tears forming in Micah’s eyes and put an arm with her with a laugh.

Garrett’s eyes flickered over to Micah and John and jealous panged in his stomach. John’s arm was securely around her shoulders and she was leaning into his chest. Garrett watched as John’s fingertips traced absentminded patterns over the exposed skin of her shoulder. Micah said something to John very quietly and he smiled.

Micah felt very relaxed being so close to John. A nagging feeling in her gut reminded her that she was only cuddling with John because, well, she didn’t exactly know why. His presence was calming her. She let him lace his fingers through hers during Can You Feel the Love Tonight?, which really surprised her. She could feel Garrett watching them and felt a bit of anxiety.

Her phone was still in her clutch, which was on the kitchen counter. She heard it beep several times, but she ignored it over and over. Leaning into John’s chest, with her hand in his, it was easy for her to nod off.

When John shifted under her, she woke with a start. The lights in the room had dimmed and they were the only two left.

“What time is it?” she grumbled, yawning as she sat up, puling away from him. John was smiling at her as she blinked several times to clear her vision.

“Just after midnight,” he said, yawning himself. “The movie ended fifteen minutes ago and everybody else dispersed. I must have fallen asleep before I could wake you up.”

“I should get going,” Micah murmured, standing up. She stretched out, the tank top riding up and exposing her stomach. She could feel John’s eyes sweep across the newly exposed skin. “Shit, my clothes are in Em and Kenny’s room.”

“Yeah, they closed their door ten minutes ago. You’re not getting your clothes back tonight, that’s for sure,” John joked, standing up as well. “But, don’t worry. I’ll bring them to you Monday.”

“Okay, thanks,” she said with a nod, walking into the kitchen to retrieve her clutch and her keys. She stepped into her heels awkwardly, still half asleep.

“Micah, you can stay here tonight if you want,” John offered. “It’s my night on the couch, but you can take it and I’ll sleep on the floor.”

“No, no, I’ll be fine. As alluring as the couch sounds, my bed is calling my name.” She nodded, sighing quietly as they stood there awkwardly, watching each other.

“I’ll, uh, w-walk you to your car,” John said with a quick smile.

She put her hand on the doorknob, resting it there until he reached her. He pulled the door open for her and let her exit first. She waited for him outside, shivering in the cool night air. He smiled, putting an arm around her and holding her close as she shivered again. They walked towards her car together and her hand shook as pressed the unlock button on the remote. He unwound his arm from her shoulders as they reached her car.

“I, uhm, I-I’m glad you stopped by,” John said with a wide smile and an awkward laugh.

Micah licked her lips before smiling. “Yeah, I am too. You’re a great pillow, by the way,” she commented, speaking the truth.

“Are you busy tomorrow?” he asked, his voice shaking a bit with nerves.

“I’m going to my mom’s for dinner, but that’s it, why?”

“Some of our friends from home are coming up for a few days, and we’re going to be drinking and having fun.”

“So, you’re having a party?”

“Yeah, I guess you could say that,” John said modestly, smiling cheekily.

“I’ll see what I can do.” Micah nodded smiling back at him again.

“Well, uh, I guess I’ll see you then.” John wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her to him. He hugged her tightly and she laughed quietly as she pulled away. Their eyes locked for a moment, and he leaned down, pressing his lips to hers.

It was a simple kiss, hardly even a peck, but it took her by surprise. A blush formed across her cheeks and she smiled up at him sheepishly. He released her, his fingers lingering at her waist.

“Text me when you get back to your suite?” he said, opening the car door for her. She only nodded, still blushing as she slid into the car. Once she was in, he shut the door and waited for her to start the engine before sauntering back to the house.