A Lot of Potential

Alex got to come back to the bus after a couple of days. He hated it because he had to take it easy, but it still didn't stop him from playing shows. I was a little worried for him too, but he claimed to be fine. After seeing he did well, I didn't complain anymore.

They played their show in Minneapolis this afternoon, leaving them the whole evening to do whatever. According to Alex, tonight they were having a big get together with other bands on the tour. I was a little worried about it. Just by being the skinny, short, and awkward person I was.

But that was my situation later, the only focus I had was getting better. I was currently feeling sick. I had a terrible headache with a stomach ache and back pains. The boys weren't helping my headache at all, since they decided to blare music from the front lounge and scream and yell. I laid in the bunk, gritting my teeth, resisting the urge to march into the room, shut the music off and slap every single one of them in the face.

"Love?" I heard Alex's perky voice from behind the curtain of the bunk. It was silent for a moment, then I heard the curtain open. "Hi." he crawled in, shutting the curtain behind him.

"Hi." I groaned, covering my face with my hands.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked, wrapping his arms around me and pulled me closer to him.

"I feel fucking terrible." I sighed. "I have a terrible headache and my stomach and back hurts."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I can tell them to shut off the music."

"No, forget it." I frowned, burying my face in his chest.

"Wait, is this?" he stared at me, giving me a serious look.

"Is this what?"

"Signs of.." he stopped, biting his lip.

"Yeah, signs of three fucking horrid days of the month." I sighed.

"Oh." he laughed, rubbing my back with the palm of his hand.

"Alex, I hate my life."

"Psh, women." he kissed my jaw and leaned his head against mine. "You're gonna live."

"Will I?" I rolled my eyes. "Would I be a bad person if I said I kinda wanna go home?"

"Aw baby, not at all." he stroked my face. "Why?"

"I just miss home." I pursed my lips. "Even though there's nothing there special to me anymore, I miss it."

"I do agree, I miss it too. I just miss being at home alone with you."

"I love you."

"As I love you too, baby." he smiled, kissing my lips passionately. "Are you tired?"

"No, I'm just in pain." I laughed lightly, grabbing the blanket to pull it around us.

"Do you need some medicine? I can go somewhere to get some for you."

"No, Alex. I'll be fine." I leaned my head against his chest. "Just stay right here and don't move."

"I can do that." he laughed, playing with my hair.

"Shut up." I ran my hand over his mouth, feeling his teeth jab into my finger. "Ow! Don't bite me!"

"I just did. Don't shush me!"

"I'll bite you back." I rolled my eyes. "Please, be quiet."

"Since you nicely asked, I shall." he smiled, kissing my forehead.

We laid there for what seemed to be for hours, just cuddling. One reason why I married Alex, he was amazing at it. He stroked my back and kissed me repeatedly until Jack ruined our blissful moment. "Alex, bro. Wake your ass up and get ready." he slammed his hand against the bunk ceiling.

"Can you make anymore fucking noise, Jack?" I snapped, setting up to glare at him.

"Calm down." Alex whispered, setting up with me. He gave me a warm hug and kissed my forehead. "Are you coming to hang out in your pajamas or are you going to get dressed?"

"I dunno." I shrugged, swinging my legs over the edge of the bunk. I slid off the long drop, almost falling when my feet touched the ground. I pulled the suitcase out of it's storage area and sat on the ground, looking for something to wear. "Does my hair look okay?"

"It looks fine." he smiled, leaning down to kiss my forehead. "I'm gonna go sit in the front while you get ready."

"Yeah, stay out of my way." I giggled. He disappeared into the front lounge, leaving me by myself to get ready. I found something acceptably cute to wear and pulled it out. I pushed the suitcase back into the storage area and skipped to the small bathroom on the bus.

I pulled off Alex's Nirvana shirt and the pajama shorts I had on. I pulled on the tightly fitting beige colored top, that was low cut with a little stringy bow. I pulled up the dusty blue colored waist skirt over my hips, latching the belt that went along with it. I then quickly did my eye makeup and added a small layer of chapstick.

I stared at myself in the mirror, admiring how classy I looked. I straightened up my back, placing my hands on my hips, pressing my chest out. The door slowly opened and my tall husband walked in, staring at me. "Primping?" he laughed, leaning against the door.

"Yeah." I shrugged.

"Why? You look perfect already."

"I just wanna make a good impression for you."

"What?" he raised a eyebrow, readjusting the black beanie on his head.

"I want to make you look good." I laughed to myself, grabbing his hand.

"Oh, to prove the fact I'm married to the most gorgeous girl in the world?"

"Maybe."

"Show off." he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me closer to him. "But I do say you look gorgeous, Mrs. Gaskarth."

"Thanks." I smiled, smoothing out the wrinkles on his black v-neck. "You look very nice too."

"Don't I-" he started, being hit by the door that flung open. Matt stood outside, shaking his head.

"No fucking in the bathroom, you two." he rolled his eyes. "Alright Gayscarfs, place your alcohol orders in."

"Red wine, Jagers, we're seriously doing Petron tonight, and some Vanilla Smirnoff for my love." he looked down at me, flashing me a devilish grin.

"Add in some Tylenol for tomorrow morning too." I rolled my eyes, pushing past both of them.

"You're being over dramatic, Haley. Have some fun." Matt shook his head. "Bro, don't tell me you've never gotten your wife drunk before."

"That's the reason why she made the comment about the Tylenol, smart ass." Alex said, walking out of the bathroom.

"Damn! I always thought Haley was a good little girl too."

"Ever heard of the phrase 'good girls go bad?'" he grimaced, wrapping his arms around my waist.

"I'd enjoy it if you guys would stop talking bad about me. Okay, thanks." I shook my head.

"Ah whatever, I'm going on a alcohol run. You coming Gaskank?"

"Nah, I'm gonna stay here."

"Stay out of trouble." Matt glared at us, turning on his heels to walk out.

We sat down in the back lounge, watching the television that was mounted on the wall. "So what's the big plan for tonight anyway?"

"We're just gonna hang out with a couple bands and probably get shitfaced." he smirked, leaning his head on my shoulder.

"Are you sure that's a good idea since you just got out of the hospital, not even a week ago for getting stabbed in the side?"

"Love, I'm fine. It doesn't hurt anymore." he shrugged.

"Until you do something to hurt yourself." I bit my lip as I shook my head. "Then you'll be crying."

"I don't cry, okay?" he narrowed his eyes at me, leaning towards my face. He connected our lips, placing a soft and sweet kiss there.

"Alex!" I heard Jack call from the front of the bus.

"Back here, dude!" he called back, awkwardly moving his face away from mine. I smiled and rested my head against his chest.

"Dude, you would've never guessed what I got!" Jack walked in with a baseball bat in his hand. He stood there admiring it while turning a ball in his hand.

"A baseball bat?"

"Oh, uh, yeah.." his smile faded, it turning into a pursed shape. "We're seriously going to play a game of baseball later."

"Last time we attempted to play, you hit the ball and hit Zack in the dick. You're either not on my team, or you're the bench warmer."

"Psh whatever! I'm hella bummed about tonight though."

"Why?" Alex raised a eyebrow.

"Because Kay asked me not to drink." he sighed, flipping his hair around with his hand.

"Bummer." he laughed, leaning his head against mine. "Luckily I can get away with these things. Be jealous."

"Fuck you man." Jack rolled his eyes. "Help me sneak some drinks when I can, bro."

"Will do."

"Well, I'm gonna go prepare myself for misery. Later." he exited the lounge, leaving us by ourselves now.

"I should ban you from drinking too." I giggled, snuggling closer to his side.

"No you will not!" he smiled, kissing me quickly. "I occasionally drink, remember that."

"I know."

"Good." he nodded. "Are you gonna play baseball with us?"

"If you promise for me not to get hurt." I bit my lip.

"You won't get hurt. Don't play outfield."

"I don't even know what that means but, okay."

"Seriously?" he laughed, causing me to blush.

"Yeah, did I ever mention I'm bad at sports?" I frowned, hiding my face with my hands.

"A couple times." he smirked, pulling my hands away from my face. "It's not that difficult, baby. Just hit the ball and run the bases. Simple as that."

"I can't even hit a ball!"

"Don't worry, I can teach you." he smiled, running his fingers through my hair.

"If I'm teachable." I rolled my eyes. "Ugh, you guys kill me with your strange ways."

"Baseball is America's past time, love."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." I sighed. "All I've ever been good at was cheerleading."

"Tell me about that, now." he raised both of his eyebrows, pursing his lips together.

"Whenever Jenna and I were in middle school, we were cheerleaders." I shrugged. "Nothing big. I tried out every year in high school and I never met their standards I guess."

"They were intimidated by your good looks."

"What good looks?" I scoffed. "No, it's because I was really shy."

"Not everyone's the same though. I thought it was going to be a task to get you to talk to me when I met you, but I was actually wrong."

"I don't know. There was something about you that I trusted. Maybe I could sense the fact you weren't such a asshole like most guys."

"I honestly used to be until I went to high school." he shamelessly admitted.

"You still are." I giggled.

"It's only because you're my best friend, and I'm allowed to be a asshole to you. I'm just not a serious one."

"Oh please!" I snorted, slapping his chest.

"You wanna fight?" he raised his eyebrow.

"Come at me bro!" I shrieked, being pulled off the sofa and pinned to the floor. "You're no fair, you're bigger!"

"I know, but it comes in handy." he smirked, laying on top of me.

"Alex, get off! You're gonna kill me!"

"No!"

"Yeah!"

"Whatever, big baby." he laughed, kissing my lips slowly. He eased off of me, pulling me back up to my feet. I saw this as a perfect chance to get him back. I pushed him to the floor, to where he was face down. I crawled on top of him, wrapping my arms around his shoulders, and kept my legs wrapped around his waist. "Dammit, you caught me off guard."

"Exactly." I kissed his cheek, resting my chin on his shoulder. He stood up from the floor with me still on his back, walking through the bus, to the door. He kicked it open with his foot, walking out to the almost dark outside.

I held on tight as he carried me around the bus to a wide, grassy area. Everyone was crowded out there, setting on the grass or in a chair. They blared music while sipping some alcoholic beverage Matt had brought back.

Alex sat me down in a chair, walking over to the cooler to get us drinks. He mixed me some coke and Vanilla Smirnoff up and handed it to me. I took a sip of it, standing up from the chair. I gave him the seat, attempting to set on the ground. "No, sit." he scolded, pulling me onto his lap.

"I don't wanna hurt you." I complained, not daring to make a movement.

"I'm fine." he shrugged.

"Well look what we've got here!" a tall boy with long, shaggy hair yelled. "All Time Fags!"

"Whoa, bro!" Alex snorted. "Who let the 3OH!3 faggots on warped?"

"Hey, we didn't come alone. We brought Katy with us." the shorter guy with dirty blonde hair said, pointing to a black haired girl with grey eyes.

"Aye Katy Perry!" Zack shouted, giving her a hug.

"Who else is coming?" Jack asked, looking at the guys of 3OH!3.

"Gabe said something about coming to hang, then the guys of FTSK may show up."

"Interesting night." Alex laughed, taking a sip of his beer.

"I've been waiting for a good warped party!" Katy yelled, pulling out of Zack's hug. She looked at Alex and I, making awkward eye contact with me. She gave me a warm smile and skipped over to me. "Hiya, I'm Katy Perry. I don't think we've met? I met Kay and Kara but not you."

"Haley Gaskarth." I innocently replied, shaking her hand. "It's nice to meet you Katy. You're a great artist." I laughed along with her.

"Oh thank you! So is your brother."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Alex snorted. "Haley is my wife, not my sister."

"Oh shit! I'm so sorry." she laughed. "You two have similar traits. Brown hair and brown eyes! I'm really sorry though."

"Nah, don't worry about it." I smiled, looking at Alex.

"Okay." she nodded, walking to mingle with the others.

"God, that's so awkward." he smiled, wrapping his arms around me and pulled me to lay back on him.

"I live for awkward moments."

"Is everything between us awkward?" he raised his eyebrow. He placed his hands over mine and rested his head on mine.

"When we very first got together, it was." I shrugged. "But after I got used to you, I became pretty comfortable with our closeness."

"I don't know about you, but I think you and I should swipe some booze and go back to the bus and get drunk together."

I smiled and took a sip of my drink. "But won't it hurt everyone's feelings because we don't want to drink with them?"

"Fuck it." he laughed. "We can go drink a little until they get ready to play some baseball."

He lightly pushed me off his lap and stood up, wrapping a arm around my waist. He pulled me to the ice chest, handing me a bottle of wine and some Smirnoff. "Wine?"

"Yes wine." he narrowed his eyes at me. "Red wine is the good shit. Hey assholes, we're going back to the bus! Come get us when you're ready to play some baseball."

"Aight, bro." Jack waved, throwing his arm over Kaylyn's shoulder.

Alex grabbed my hand and towed me around the bus, to the door. He led me up the steps and stopped us in the front lounge, taking the wine from my hand. He sat it on the counter, walking around the small kitchen area, looking for cups. He finally found two and poured even amounts of the red liquid into the cups. He smiled at me as he turned, handing me a cup.

I looked down at it, a little worried to drink it. "Do I want to do this, or no?" I said aloud, listening to his cute laugh.

"Love, it's way better than the pussy coke and vanilla Smirnoff you drink."

I took his word for it, taking a sip of it. He was most definitely correct. "Mhm!"

"Told you." he smiled, setting down next to me. "We're gonna have fun tonight, okay?"

"Okay." I nodded, leaning against him. "I wanna change."

"You got all dressed up for nothing?"

"Yup." I sighed, standing up. I skipped to the back where our suitcase was stored and pulled it out again. I dug through it, finding a tank top and jean shorts. He walked to the back where I was, leaning against the wall, taking a sip of of his wine.

"That looks nice."

"Does it?"

"Yes." he nodded. "Very appropriate for baseball conditions."

"Oh please." I rolled my eyes. I stood up and stripped out of the too formal outfit I was wearing. I pulled on the tank top and shorts, walking to the mirror to examine myself. I sighed, seeing my bra though my tank top. "Dammit."

"Nice bra." he commented, taking a sip of wine. "I have something for you to match it with." he said, disappearing. He came back with his red plaid shirt in his hand. He held it out for me, allowing me to slip my arms through the sleeves. It was big, but worked out perfectly.

"Does it look good?"

"Perfect." he smiled, bending down to kiss me. "You're cute."

"Psh, whatever." I giggled, moving away from him, traveling to the front lounge to retrieve my drink. I took a drink, looking around for a second, soon came to realize he was staring at me. "Yes?" I embarrassed him for staring.

"I, um, I just really fucking love you, okay?"

I rubbed the back of my neck and smiled. "I love you too, Alex." I wrapped my arms around him, squeezing him tightly.

The bus door opened and Jack walked in. He stopped and crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes at us. "Can you guys go a minute without touching each other? It's sickening."

Alex leaned down, kissing me. He flipped Jack the finger as he did so. He pulled away and smirked, turning to face Jack. "Fuck you asshole. Don't act like you don't do it with Kay either."

"Ah whatever! We're fixing to play so get your asses out!"

"Okay." he nodded, squeezing my hand. "Chug your wine, like right now."

"I don't wanna throw up though."

"You won't, I promise." he smiled. "Go."

I tilted my head back and forced myself to down the red drink. I had only a little left and couldn't do it anymore. I handed him the cup, letting him finish off what was left in it. "If I throw up, you're holding my hair back."

"Alright, alright." he laughed grabbing my hand. "Lets go."

"Carry me again." I grinned, hopping onto his back.

He shook his head and smiled, grabbing onto my legs so I wouldn't slide off. He quickly moved out of the bus, bringing us back outside. A bunch of other guys were there now and gave us strange looks. "Whoever wants me on their team, they're taking Haley. We're a packaged deal, take it or leave it." he laughed, pointing to all the guys. He helped me slide off his back, grabbing me by the waist so I wouldn't fall.

"There's sixteen of us, so eight per team." Jack shouted, looking around. "Better yet, who's team captains?"

"I think Jack and Lex should go against each other." Kara laughed. "Or is that a terrible idea?"

"That'd actually be pretty funny." I agreed, looking up at Alex.

"It's whatever if it's cool with everyone else." he shrugged, looking around.

"Sounds good to me!" Jack narrowed his eyes at him. "It's on."

"Bring it!"

"We'll kick his ass, babe." I giggled. "Pick your teams so we can get started."

"I want Ri." Alex pointed at Rian, motioning for him to stand by us.

"But Kara and I are a packaged deal too."

"Alright, Ri and Kara then." he rolled his eyes. "Jack, who do you want?"

"I want Zack, Katy, Marc and Gabe!"

"Kyle, Caleb, Austin, get your asses over here." Alex pointed to the ground next to us.

"Woo!" a tall blonde exclaimed, running over to us.

"Now who do you want Jack?"

"I want Jonathan and Sean."

"Then that leaves me with Nat! We're gonna lose now." he laughed. "Lets play ball!"

"Who's batting first?"

"Flip a coin."

"I call heads!" Jack screamed, only to get tails. "Fuck my life."

"Go get on the outfield, jackass!" Alex raised his arm. "Matt, be empire keep score you useless son of a bitch. Rian, bat first."

"Aight Captain." Rian rolled his eyes, picking up the baseball bat from ground. The bases were made up of random objects. The ice chest for home plate, a skateboard for first, and beer bottles for second and third.

He stood by the ice chest, getting positioned to swing. Jonathan was the pitcher for Jack's team. He threw a straight ball to Rian, only to get it hit out past second base. Rian took off running quickly, getting all the way to second base.

"You wanna go?" Alex smiled, picking up the bat.

"Uh, I dunno." I shrugged.

"I'll help you." he said, handing me the bat. He positioned me where Rian had just stood. He showed me how to hold the bat, and attempted to show me how to swing it without dropping it. He ended up standing behind me, our bodies touching, as he held his hands over mine on the bat. Luckily, Jonathan threw a easy ball or we would've missed it. When it was thrown, Alex helped me hit it with a lot of force, sending it out past second base again. He took the bat from me and told me to run without getting caught.
___________________________________________

The game of baseball was intense. Alex's team ended up beating Jack's team by many points. Now everyone was focused on one thing: getting drunk. Alex and I were almost there. He had made me try Jagers and wine for the night. But everyone else was totally wasted, besides Jack and Kay.

I knew I was going to regret drinking in the morning. I always do. Alex kept the booze for us coming. He was talking about something that made no sense, making Katy and Zack laugh hysterically. I was feeling a little too tired to process what was going on.

"I, I love you." he mumbled into my ear, kissing the skin on my neck repeatedly.

"I love you too." I replied, moving away from his lips. I didn't wanna take things too far tonight.

"Wanna know a secret guys?" Zack laughed. "Katy kisses girls and likes it."

"Yeah, I do." she giggled along with him. "Do you kiss girls, Haley?"

"No." I shook my head, taking a sip of what little wine I had left in my cup.

Before I knew it, she was in my face. "Wanna try it?" she whispered, moving her lips into mine. I froze and pulled away, horrifyingly glancing at Alex. His mouth was wide open with shock.

"Holy fuck." he laughed.

Katy moved them back into mine again, making it more lively. I refused to let this go on. This wasn't me. I pushed her away, hopping up from Alex's lap and nearly stumbled back to the bus. I dragged myself up the steps, tripping and falling in the front lounge. I stood up, picking up the glass of wine that sat on the counter, pouring me another cup. I quickly drank it, just now trying to get myself completely drunk so I wouldn't remember this tomorrow.

Alex stumbled in, holding himself against the cabinet for support. He did the same, pouring himself another glass of wine. He didn't say anything, so I assumed he was mad. "Are you angry?" I choked, beginning to tremble.

"No." he shook his head, moving closer to me. "I love you." he said, slamming his lips into mine. What was with everyone wanting to kiss me tonight? This kiss was exciting. Something that I could enjoy. He lifted me off the ground, setting me up on the counter as he continued his actions.

I felt his hands on my shoulders. He slid his plaid shirt off of me, now pulling at the bottom of my tank top. I wanted to hold back, but I couldn't do it. My desire for him took over, me assisting him with taking my tank top off. I wrapped my legs around his waist and ran my fingers through his hair. He pulled me off the counter and took it to the bunk, continuing our fun in the small space. We successfully shed our clothes. He held me underneath him, managing not to bump his head on the top of the bunk this time.

"Alex, please be careful." I whispered, my hot breath ricocheting off his face. He bit his lip and nodded, quickly pushing inside of me. He carefully, yet quickly moved his hips back and forth. I moaned quietly and ran my fingers through his hair, tugging at it slightly. He gripped my body, right underneath my rib cage, hard enough to leave bruises. "Alex, ow." I grabbed at his hands, pushing them off.

The alcohol had it's full effect on him now. He was getting aggressive now. It all started with a passionate kiss on the neck, turning into biting and sucking. Don't get me wrong, the sex was amazing but other than that, he was hurting me. I kept moaning to let him know I was enjoying it, but I bit my lip to hold back the cries in pain.

We both ran into the exciting feeling of a orgasm. He moved to my side and wrapped his arms around me. I closed my eyes, trying my best to hold tears back. My body was aching, and not to mention that I was starting to feel sick from everything I've drank tonight.

"I love you." he whispered, nuzzling his face into my hair.

"I love you too." I whispered back.

And everything else was a blur.

I woke up the next afternoon, tangled in the blankets with him still sleeping peacefully at my side. I had a throbbing headache and I felt like I was going to be sick. I found important clothing at the foot of the bunk, slipping on my underwear and his shirt. It hurt to flex any muscles in my body. I leaned back and cuddled closer to him.

I closed my eyes and tried to remember what all went on the night before. I strangely only remembered coming back to the bus with Alex, then falling asleep. A loud bang of thunder sounded outside the bus, nearly causing me to end up on top of him. His bloodshot eyes slowly opened, setting up to look at me. "What're you doing?"

"Sorry, the thunder scared me." I apologized. "Please, go back to sleep."

"Probably not gonna happen." he sighed, laying back down. "I have a stupid fucking headache!"

"I do too.."

"I'm sorry, I'm an idiot." he turned to his side, pulling me to his bare chest.

"No you're not." I frowned, wrapping my arms around his body. "Alex, what happened last night?"

"We played baseball, got drunk." he exhaled deeply. "Why?"

"I dunno, I can't remember getting drunk."

"Oh and Katy Perry kissed you." he stated calmly. "Wait, Katy Perry kissed you?!"

I began to have flashbacks of the skinny black haired girl placing her lips on mine. I shuttered, making awkward eye contact with him. "I swear I had nothing to do with that Alex."

"I know." he nodded. "Then we had sex. Do you remember that?"

"Yeah." I nodded. "You were a little aggressive though."

"Shit, I'm sorry." he apologized again. "Maybe we should just stop drinking for a while."

"Sounds great." I rolled my eyes, resting my forehead against his collarbone.

He laughed and began to play with my hair. "I just really need more sleeping time. You do too." he whispered, shutting his eyes again.

"Uh huh." I nodded, closing my eyes too. I laid there quietly for a moment, almost back to sleep, when I heard shouting coming from the front lounge. It sounded like Kara and Rian were at it. I couldn't tell what they were saying but it sounded harsh. Alex sighed and pulled the curtain open, sticking his head out to see what was going on.

"Here's a idea for both of you. Shut the fuck up and take it outside so the ones with a hangover can get some damn peace and quiet!" he spat.

"Shut the fuck up Alex, it's raining outside!" Kara yelled back.

"Then maybe you should argue in the rain."

"You are such an arrogant motherfucker!"

"Oh my God. Shut up!" he sighed in frustration. "Take it outside or argue about it later." he slammed the curtain shut, turning back around to me. Things got silent again, allowing me to attempt to go back asleep. I felt myself out of it, to sleep off this hangover.