A Shot in the Dark

"Wait...what?"

Becca wasn't entirely sure how many times she'd have to say it. Besides, she thought it was fairly obvious anyway.

"I think there's a slight chance that Lee left the note under the door," she repeated, gauging Kelly's reaction closely.

The pair were out to lunch. Becca had quit her job and since Kelly had never been successful in finding one anyway, they had a bunch of time to themselves. They were situated a few blocks from their flat in a Chinese restaurant that they'd recently become obsessed with. Kelly's eyes widened as she dropped her chopsticks onto her plate and her hands flat onto the table with a loud thud.

"No fuckin' way."

Becca nodded, smirking. The more she thought about it over the past few days, the more she knew it had to be true. Jona had thrown the note away but Becca salvaged it, reading it over and over. It didn't seem plausible that it was some rabid, jealous fan. Becca made appearances in some of the band's photos and occasionally had been spotted holding Matty's hand but nothing was announced officially. Anyway, Jona and Kelly were still a very new thing and not very public at all.

"I mean, I don't think it's a fan. How would they know about you and Jona? You guys aren't official or anything, and you're keeping it way quiet," Becca pointed out, tossing some broccoli into her mouth and pointing her chopsticks at Kelly, "It has to be someone we know."

Kelly looked at the ceiling thoughtfully, chewing her food slowly. Becca could practically see the machine humming behind her eyes. It didn't make sense for Lee to do such a cruel thing but it was the most logical conclusion to come to.

"I agree with that; I just don't know. Why would Lee do something so mean? The letter was definitely a girl's handwriting," Kelly said, obviously refusing to believe the worst of him. Becca nodded.

"Matty told me something last week though, that Lee is seeing someone. He could have had her write it," Becca suggested. She'd been nervous to present her idea so she'd thought it through as thoroughly as possible.

"What the fuck then? If he's with someone else then why bother ruining what I have?"

"I dunno. I haven't thought into his reason, I just can't see why anyone else would do it, you know?" Becca said, shrugging.

"How would we find out if it was true though? Now I want to just say something," Kelly said aggressively. She'd always been such an angry person, always ready to cut someone's throat and then figure out the reason she did it after. Becca usually felt the same way, though maybe not quite as passionately. Kelly's hand hovered over her phone.

"Well, don't just text him about it! Maybe suggest hanging out or going to coffee or something and then see how it goes. If he sees you trying to patch things up then maybe he'll feel guilty and admit it," Becca suggested. When Kelly made a face, she continued, "Besides, Warped is what? Exactly three weeks away now? You'll be in such close perimeter to him then. Might as well try to make things at least a little civil."

Kelly sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She wasn't the type to express emotions or blab her feelings, which always made it difficult. Becca usually had no problem telling someone her feelings, whether she liked them or hated them. It was one of the only differences the two girls had in personality. Kelly nodded though, and picked up her phone to set up the date.

Becca checked her own phone, startled at the amount of messages from Matty. She read over them quickly and then, heart pounding, looked up at her friend.

"Uh, Kell?"

"You think I should lay it on thick?" she asked, ignoring Becca's statement, "I could say 'Hey, wanted to do lunch and maybe talk things out? I'm tired of not talking' maybe even put the two little X's at the end."

"I think you should cancel that message because apparently, um, Lee did it," Becca stuttered out cautiously. Kelly's head snapped up from her phone and in a millisecond, her eyes clouded into anger.

"What?" she spat.

"I have all these messages from Matty. Apparently Jona brought it up at practice and Lee made some comment and there's been a fight," Becca explained quickly.

"Fuckin' shit, are you serious? Is Jona okay?" Kelly was already calling the guitarist, phone pressed to her ear and a worried crease in her forehead. She turned in her seat, looking for the waitress while Becca texted Matty back. "Can I get the check?"

The waitress placed the check on the table and, without even looking at it, Kelly threw some pound notes at her. The Asian woman looked slightly surprised but left, taking the money with her. Kelly sighed in frustration when Jona didn't answer and she hung up, re-dialing immediately. Meanwhile, Becca was getting instant updates from her boyfriend. The waitress brought the change back and thanked them but the girls didn't even hear her, leaving her tip and then rushing out the door.

"Why won't he pick up the phone? Fucking dickhole!" Kelly swore, slamming the car door shut as she reached it. Becca giggled as a couple stared at Kelly, offended looks crossing their faces. Becca was used to Kelly's outbursts and she got in on the driver's side, making a point to not let her friend drive. "Did Matty answer you?"

"Well, he won't shut the fuck up actually," she answered, tossing her phone into her best friend's lap. Kelly scrolled through it and let out a string of curses, resting her head back and closing her eyes. The fact that things had escalated so quickly was unnerving and Becca was slightly worried, though not as much as Kelly was.

"They're at our fucking flat, the geniuses," Kelly said. Becca assumed Matty had texted her this and she nodded, not having been sure of exactly where they'd been going anyway. "I guess, uh, well this is awkward for me to be reading but I guess Jona is flipping out right now and the only one any of the guys could think to calm him down was me.

Becca recognized the soft tone in her friend's voice. She was obviously very pleased with that comment and a small content smile graced her face. Becca smiled as well; it was nice to see her friend happy in this way. Suddenly Kelly was very calm, deciding to take on the caretaker role instead of bugging out herself.

They pulled into the parking lot of their building within no time. Kelly and Becca both raced out of the car and up the two flights of steps to their floor. Both were puzzled when there was no one in the hall and verging on complete confusion when they heard yelling from the inside of their apartment. Becca pushed the door open to find catastrophe.

Jona was storming around, screaming profanities and stringing along incoherent angry phrases. Matty was sat on the couch, hunched over with his head in his hands. In the small dining room, Oli sat with his brother Tom. Tom was making some small effort to calm down Jona but it looked like they'd mostly given up as Oli was texting disinterestedly.

"How did you guys get in here?" Becca asked.

As soon as Jona was pulled from his own little bubble and saw Kelly, his rant ended abruptly. Instead of pacing and shouting he stood completely still, chest heaving, and just looked at the two startled girls in the doorway.

"I told yeh he'd only calm down 'round her," Oli said, not looking up from his phone and continuing whatever message he was sending. Tom scoffed and sat back in his chair, pulling out his own phone. Kelly closed the door and locked it, making her way across the room.

"Jona, what the fuck are you raging about?" she asked, wrapping her arms easily around his neck. He sighed, his hands finding their own way to her hips and pulling her in closely. Becca watched with a content smile as he rested his head on hers and closed his eyes. She made her way over to her boyfriend, who was staring in awe at the two of them.

"Unbelievable," he said, idly pulling Becca into his lap when she got close enough to him, "He flips the fuck out on Lee, punches him straight in the nose, rants and raves like a bloody lunatic the rest of the damn time but as soon as he fuckin' sees her he quits."

"I dunno babe," Becca said, kissing his temple gently. He grinned up at her. "She can tame the wild beast, I suppose."

Jona still hadn't answered Kelly though and Becca was beginning to grow curious. She wanted the full story and while she didn't mind the pair standing in the middle of the living room, holding each other, she'd prefer it if he spoke while they did it. Never the one to stay quiet about her feelings, she did something about it.

"Really though, what the hell happened?" she piped up. Matty had his arms wrapped around her waist, his fingers doodling nonchalantly on her thighs. It made chills run up and down her spine and butterflies start fluttering in the pit of her stomach. She ran her hands through his hair, keeping her attention focused on Jona.

"Yes, please tell me," Kelly said, pulling herself out of Jona's arms and staring up at him. He rubbed his eyes and then sighed.

"I was just talkin' about the note, y'know? Oli asked if things were normal between us and so I said they were better than ever. Lee didn't like that so much and he said some nasty things about yeh, obviously I got pissed at 'im," he said. "We had some words and then he admitted to it. Fuckin' dick! Got his bird to write it out, only a nasty cunt would do something like that honestly. I punched him straight in the nose, not hard enough I don't think."

"Well, it's all over now so relax," Kelly said softly, reaching up to run a hand through his hair. He smiled down at her and shook his head. "It didn't even work so let's just get over it, okay? You hit him and that's good enough for me. I'll go to lunch with him, we'll sort shit out, and it's in the past."

"Don't get ahead of yourself Kell," Becca said, surprised of her friend's initiative. She figured that Kelly would be seething, regardless of her front to take care of Jona. Instead, the American girl shrugged and shook her head.

"No, I can be the bigger person just this once. Besides, we're all about to be stuck in close quarters for a few months, what good is it if I just attack him constantly? Just because we're making peace doesn't mean I have to be close with him."

"Finally! Someone with sense!" Tom exclaimed from the table. Oli reached over and smacked the back of his brother's head before rolling his eyes and settling back into his phone. Matty giggled underneath Becca and she smiled fondly at him before looking up at her friend, who was now glancing at her.

"Besides, I'm sure we'll find plenty of bitches to fight while we're there," she added, winking. Tom groaned and Becca threw her head back and laughed. That was definitely true. Kelly was never silent about people she disliked, and Becca agreed wholeheartedly. The two often got themselves into trouble that way.

"You're lettin' him off easy Kell," Matty said from underneath Becca.

Becca looked down at her boyfriend in surprise. She hadn't expected him to stoke the fire they'd all expected to be underneath Kelly. In fact, she'd sort of expected him to be annoyed with all the drama, and trying to get everyone over it as quickly as possible. He was looking at Kelly now, waiting expectantly for a reply.

"Sure I am, but what more can I do? Scream at him? Refuse to see him? Hit him? That'll just make life difficult for all of us. I don't know why I feel this way," she answered, looking up at Jona and over at Tom and Oli before back at Matty, "I just...do."

A slow grin spread over Becca's face as she looked at Kelly. Matty shrugged and rubbed his hand up and down his girlfriend's back before looking up at her. Becca knew in that moment that something amazing was happening to her friend--something just as amazing as what had happened to her.

When Becca had stumbled across Matty, she'd been broken. She had been used before, never finding the right guy, and always being left guessing at what exactly had gone wrong. He had changed all of that. Within days he had her self esteem rising and her outlook on life becoming more and more positive until she was bursting at the seams with happiness. Her normal gloom was gone, replaced with hope.

Becca saw all of that happening in Kelly.

It always happened this way; one girl's life directly reflected the other, though Kelly had always been a bit behind Becca as far as the timeline went. They always went through the same thing at the same time. Kelly had still been her usual self when they moved. She'd been angry and cynical, sad even, and gone along with the games Lee played.

Now, peace replaced her anger and hope replaced her cynicism. Becca was surprised it had taken her so long to realize it but since Jona came around, Kelly had even started writing again. It had been a silent development. One day, Becca saw Kelly sitting at her desk, typing furiously at her laptop. The next day, Becca read the numerous poems she'd posted on her blog.

"It's because she's happy," Becca said into the silence that had followed Kelly's statement. Kelly's eyes flicked up from Matty's to look at her best friend with curiosity. "You're happy because of Jona, you know? You're changing. Just like how I changed because of this idiot."

"Babe," Matty whined, "That would've been sweet had yeh not called me an idiot."

"Well, you're my idiot," she replied back, hastily pecking his lips. He didn't like a quick kiss though, leaning up and pressing his lips to hers for a longer moment before pulling away, satisfied.

Kelly stood perfectly still, eyes wide and mouth open slightly. She appeared deep in thought before she whirled around to look at Jona, who had cracked a smile so large he looked like a kid on Christmas. Becca's heart swelled as they kissed each other and she pecked a small kiss to the top of her boyfriend's head, just for good measure.

She was happy that her friend was finally getting the type of attention she deserved. Everyone she'd ever been interested in had mostly been in it for themselves. Becca had solved some of Kelly's ex-boyfriend issues when she first visited New York. She landed in the state from Australia with jetlag and a vendetta. That was all over now.

Becca and Kelly had struggled together and now it seemed they were triumphing together.

"Alright already," Tom complained, "Yeh're makin' me feel lonely and unwanted, like a red-headed stepchild or somethin'."

Oli barked out a laugh and swatted at his younger brother. Tom dodged the blow, launching his own attack and smacking his brother's beloved phone out of his hand. Oli looked as though Tom had just swatted an infant to the floor and, instead of picking up the phone, threw himself out of the chair onto Tom. The younger man fell out of his chair, bringing his brother with him.

The pair rolled around on the floor, shouting insults at each other and smacking each other. Everyone in the room watched the spectacle, until finally, Kelly stalked aggressively over to the two and pulled them apart. There was a lot of effort on her part, because neither man wanted to let the other get the last hit in.

"Jesus Christ! How old are you two?" she asked, holding them apart by their upper arms.

Tom looked at her mischeivously and then grinned. Holding up four of his fingers he replied, "This many." Oli and Tom both broke out in giggles, as did Matty and Jona. Kelly rolled her eyes and huffed. She punched each man on the arm in her frustration before throwing her arms up in defeat and walking back over to Jona.

"I guess I'll actually have to set up lunch with Lee though, if his girl allows it that is," Kelly said thoughtfully, mostly to Becca than anyone else, "Tomorrow's just as good as any day, right? Just get it over with."

Becca opened her mouth to answer when she was cut off by her boyfriend.

"Tomorrow's no good, yeh have plans," he said abruptly. Kelly opened her mouth and then shut it, a very confused look crossing her face. Becca was just as confused.

"I--what?" was all Kelly could manage.

"It's true," Jona continued, "Yeh have plans with me, Becca, and Matt."

The two girl's eyes immediately shot to one another, mulling over ideas of what the plans could possibly be. It was obviously some type of surprise; it didn't make sense that both girls would have forgotten or not known about these mysterious "plans." They stared at each other for a moment before, simultaneously, they began complaining loudly to the boys they were closest to.

"What plans? What are we doing?"

"Where are we going? I better not have to get up early. Where are these plans?"

Becca gripped Matty's face in her hands and made him look up at her. He merely grinned crookedly up at her, making her heart melt but giving her no clarity on the issue at hand. She tried to appear angry but as his hands slid over hers, she found herself forgetting what she was confused about in the first place.

"It's a surprise," he answered, shutting Kelly up in the process. "Yeh'll find out tomorrow. Jona and I are stayin' over, I hope that's alright but we do have to be up a bit early to get there."

"Of course you can stay," Becca answered automatically. She loved when Matty stayed over. He couldn't always and Becca always appreciated when he did. There was something about simply existing tangled up silently in a person that you loved that really made her giddy. Besides, now that Matty had said the three little words (which she hadn't yet told Kelly, for some odd reason) everything seemed a whole lot brighter. "But what time do we need to wake up?"

"Probably about eight," Jona answered and Kelly groaned immediately, attaching herself to him. His tattooed arms were immediately around her, hands on her hips as she whined to him.

"That's so early baby, why not nine?" she pushed and he struggled for a moment.

"No, no, it definitely has to be eight. C'mon, it's not that bad. Yeh can still go to bed early now, it isn't late," he reminded her.

"Yeah..." she trailed off, "But you're staying over so that means I'll get like, no sleep."

At that, Tom and Oli burst out laughing. Matty chuckled as Becca burst into a fit of giggles. Tom thought it was the funniest by far, hitting his head on the table a few times and laughing silently into his brother.

"Oh shut up Tom!" Kelly scolded, "I didn't even mean it like that! You guys are so stupid." When no one provided back up and everyone continued laughing, she sighed and giggled at her own line. "I better just go to sleep now, since I need to be up at the ass crack of dawn."

Dragging Jona along with her, Kelly made her way to her bedroom after saying goodbye to Tom and Oli and goodnight to Becca and Matty. The brothers decided it was best if they left, since Oliver had promised his girlfriend he'd be home early anyway. That left Becca and Matty alone on the couch, their friends behind a closed door down the hallway.

Matty sat back, pulling Becca with him so she was still on his lap. They were silent for a while. He played with the ends of her hair and hummed happily as she stroked the back of his neck absentmindedly. She was trying to figure out where exactly this surprise could be taking place and, of course, what the surprise itself was.

She was left with no clue, though remembering that Matty's last surprise had blown her mind, she wouldn't put anything past him.

"I can see yeh tryin' to figure it out," he commented, "There's practically smoke comin' outta those ears."

She rolled her eyes. "You're hilarious."

He smiled and kissed her, cradling her in his arms as though she were the most fragile thing on Earth. His eyes shone with what Becca could only help but know to be love and admiration. Her entire body felt warm because of it. She leaned up to kiss him before pulling away and leaning her head on his chest. Everything about the moment was perfect.

"We should go to sleep," he said quietly. Becca could hear his heart beating underneath her. Every breath he took was magnified to her as she leaned her head on him. "We really do need to be up on time and it's very important."

"You don't need to do this stuff, y'know?" Becca said, looking up at him. She elaborated at his confused look. "You don't need to take me out or have some surprise all the time. I love you. I love just sitting here with you. You don't need to do any of the other stuff."

"Of course I do," he answered immediately, running a thumb over her cheekbone, "You're my girl. You deserve it."

Becca smiled up at him. He kissed her again, except this time more passionately. It was so silent that Becca could believe they were the last two people on the planet. She wouldn't mind it if they were. His kisses were what kept her alive and she couldn't ever fathom how she lived before she received them.

"I love yeh Becca," he breathed, his lips barely touching hers. She kissed him shortly and then smiled.

"I love you more."

"No fuckin' way, impossible."