Right Girl.

It can drive you insane, being stuck in a room with absolutely nothing to do and you’re not allowed to leave at all because you’re under strict orders to stay just where you are. Alice Brock was stuck in just that situation and she was ready to start screaming…mentally. A sigh left her lips as she crossed her ankles which were slightly hanging over the edge of the armrest since she was lying down across the couch in the room she was occupying. Originally she hadn’t been alone but all the boys disappeared and she couldn’t do much about it.

Suddenly the door opened and her ears were met with loud laughter and chatter. Despite the stressed tension in the air, the boys always seemed to manage a laugh and have a good time. Kennedy, her older brother by three years, instantly came over to her, dropping down on her so he was lying on top of her. As much as she wanted to yell for him to get his fat ass of her, she just glared which he responded to with an innocent smile. He knew she wanted to get out of this room and go somewhere else but he couldn’t get himself to let her leave. If she was right there, he knew she was safe and he didn’t have to freak out every single second. Besides, Kenny doubted she could ever handle staying alone.

“I know you’re bored but you’re going to have to deal with it.” He whispered to her, brushing her brown hair out from her face.

“I don’t want to.” She whispered, wincing at the sound of her voice.

It had never sounded right after what happened.

Alice looked over her brother with tight lips, running her eyes over his face. They somewhat looked the same, enough to show that they were siblings. Her long brown hair that stopped midway down her back was darker and curlier than Kennedy’s, their eyes were the same in a shining light brown, and she was overall smaller than he was. He’d gotten the tall gene which she hadn’t and his face was just a bit chubbier than her thin face. Then again, that could be because she doesn’t eat as much as she used to eat.

Turning her head to the side, she let her eyes roam along the boys. There was Pat sprawled out on the floor and starting up at the ceiling. Alice had always wanted to get a pair of scissors and chop his hair off whenever he was asleep. She always made Kennedy get a haircut if his own hair got too long for her taste. If a guy’s hair competes with her own, then something is obviously wrong. Nonetheless, she thinks Pat is a rather good guy. Next in her sight was Jared who was teetering on the back two legs of a chair, making the girl wonder if he was going to fall over.

Jared was the one she could go to when she wanted something. He had this weakness when it came to her so if her brother wouldn’t get her something, she’d usually try with Jared. Garrett suddenly popped up, but only because he’d jumped from his spot to sit on Pat. Honestly, if Alice could, she’d be sitting in Garrett’s lap all the time. To her, he was just adorable and rather good looking as well. Even though she doesn’t talk much, she could still just hang around Garrett and have a great time.

Lastly, there was John. Her light brown eyes stared at the guy leaning against the wall with his head bent over the journal in his hands. She couldn’t see his face but she didn’t have to in order to know what he looked like. She’ll admit that John was attractive but other than that, she wanted nothing to do with him. Ever. It wasn’t a secret that John played around the field and to her; he was just some jerk that was friends with her brother. All he serves for her was something to look at when she was bored.

The whole problem with this is that Alice rarely hangs out with the guys. The only time she’s around them is if her brother is there otherwise she goes into a different room. There are those rare occasions when she’ll be around one of them, like when she watches movies with Garrett, but even then she won’t say anything to them, she’ll sit far away from them, and she’ll only even do that when she’s mad at her brother. The only person in her life was her brother and that’s how she wanted it to stay. Her brother wouldn’t ever hurt her.

“Can I just go walk around?”

Kennedy bit his lower lip, posed to say no but he knew she needed to do something besides laying here while they worked. Plus, it’s his fault that Alice didn’t have her iPod since he rushed her out of the house because she wanted to stay and eat her damn pancakes. The ones he made for her.

“I guess, just don’t go off too far.”

Nodding happily, Alice slid out from under him and went over toward the door, twisting the knob so she could get out of the room that was starting to suffocate her. She looked up and down the hallway before deciding to head to the right and she just started walking. The girl was rather comfortable, wearing a pair of black skinny jeans and a tank top with an oversized blue sweatshirt over it, the sleeves pushed up to her elbows. To finish it off, she had a light blue beanie pulled over her head and her favourite red converses on her feet.

Where she went, she didn’t care at all. At the moment, she was going down different hallways and through different rooms without a single care. As long as she stayed away from all the guys and people then she was fine. Eventually, she reached a room that was completely white and bright. It was like a meeting room, three long tables running in the room with eight chairs to each table. Three of the walls were lines with cabinets all along it and floor to ceiling except a little room for the counter top so people could put stuff down. The fourth wall was nothing but windows, shining all around the room which explains why it was so bright.

A couple of snacks were lined on the counter tops and Alice made a dash to grab the bag of sour gummy worms that were there. Recently the boys had stocked up on food and drinks since they’d be spending so much time in the studio. Part of her felt bad for them but then she’d remember that she was stuck here with them and she’d just resort back to being pissed. Opening up the bag, she took two of the little worms out and stuck them into her mouth before she walked over to the windows and leaned against one of the pillars dividing two windows.

“Alice?”

The brunette jumped when she heard her name, snapping around to see none other than John. Alone in a room with John O’Callaghan? To some girls that might just be heaven to them but to her, it was a nightmare. The younger Brock didn’t say anything, just looked at him with a raised eyebrow. It was her way of asking what he wanted.

“Do you think you could read this over and tell me what you think? It’s been finished for a while but…I’m just not sure.”

John had been back in the room and reading over the song he’d written a while ago, knowing they needed to start recording it soon but he still wasn’t sure about some of it. When Alice had left the room, John couldn’t help but peek his eyes up to watch the brunette beauty leave. He was fully aware that Kennedy had said she was off limits many times but he couldn’t help staring at her. He’s had quite a few girls in his lifetime but none of them ever compared to Alice Brock, none of them ever would. If Kennedy weren’t scary when he was pissed, he’d try to rope her in but now it was nothing but playful flirting.

Through it all, it seemed like she never responded anyway which sometimes irritated John since he never failed at charming a girl. His intentions were mostly honest in asking her opinion on the song but he also wanted to be alone with her. Rarely did Kennedy ever let her out of his sights which John thinks is more than a little weird. Alice didn’t say anything but she took the journal that he held out with shaking fingers. That did make him curious but he kept his lips shut while she read over the words written out in his messy handwriting.

“Its good.”

Two simple words made John smile but at the same time made him uneasy. It was her voice. She hasn’t sounded the same in a long time; her beautiful, almost musical voice was rough now. Kenny said something happened to her vocal cords but she refused to get surgery since there was a high risk of her losing her voice completely. Even with the little imperfection, she was still perfect in John’s eyes.

“You really think so? You’re not just bullshitting me since I’m best friends with your brother?”

Alice rolled her eyes but nodded as she stuck another of the sour worms into her mouth. Much like the horny guy he was, his eyes were watching as she held that little piece of candy and how her lips just captured the sour treat. It made him shift around uncomfortably.

“Anyway, thanks. I knew you’d give me an honest opinion on it.”

Again, Alice just nodded but kept her eyes on John as she wondered why he was still in here. It was started to get to her, having him so close but it wasn’t like she could scream or anything. She also felt weird, feeling like John was watching her and that just made her even more uncomfortable.

“So Alice, I was wondering…” John started, taking a step closer so he could lean against the pillar next to her. “Why are you so shy around all of us? You act like you don’t know us sometimes.”

She bit her lower lip, backing up a step before she looked out the window so she wouldn’t have to look into John’s eyes. She wasn’t going to say anything, not now and certainly not ever.

“Come on Alice…I feel like you hate us or something…” John whispered quietly, his hand reaching out in order to caress her cheek.

Her eyes caught sight of his hand coming out to her and instantly her eyes widened as her mind played the vision of a hand coming down to slap her. Before John could even touch her or realize what was going on, she ran. He was left staring at the space she’d just occupied with confused eyes while Alice ran as fast as she could with tears running down her face. As if Kennedy knew, much like he always did ever since what happened, he was right there in front of the door with a worried expression before Alice jumped in his arms and let a sob leave her lips.

“Home.”

The single word came out of her lips so quietly, Kenny almost missed it but he was able to just catch it and he knew he needed to get her out of here. He wanted to know what was going on with his sister, why she was acting like this but for now he could only think that her thoughts must have gotten to her and she’d gotten stuck in the past. Opening the door, he looked at all the guys who were standing up now with worried expressions, all looking ready to hug Alice who was in Kenny’s arms still. She would not like that one bit.

“I’m going to take her home. I’ll be back tomorrow and I can catch up then.”

“Is she going to be okay?” Garrett asked, wondering to himself what could have happened.

Kennedy didn’t say anything, just grabbed his cell phone and car keys before heading out of the building with his younger sister still in his arms. When he got outside, the typical Arizona heat was pounding down on them but they were both used to it so it didn’t stop either of them from their current actions. The older Brock opened the passenger side door and set his sister down, prying her fingers away from him since she’d been holding him so tightly. As quick as he could, he went around and got into the driver’s seat while starting up the car.

It didn’t take long for him to get to the house that he owned, the one that he was now sharing with his sister since halfway through her last year of high school. Originally she was going to live with their parents till she was able to find a place of her own but after what happened she only wanted to be around Kennedy. It worked for both of them.

After parking in the driveway, he got out and walked around to get Alice out who’d thankfully fallen asleep on the drive to the house. With her in his arms bridal style, he had to shut the car door with his foot but he got it nonetheless and somehow managed to get the front door opened as well though that was certainly difficult. He took her to her bedroom which was right across from his, laying her down in her bed but just as he was about to leave she grabbed hold of his shirt, tugging on it slightly. Smiling, he crawled in with her and ran his fingers through her hair comfortingly.

While the Brocks were having their moment, John was back at the studio with the rest of the boys. He was still confused about what had happened and when he got back to the room and the guys told him Kennedy had taken a sobbing Alice home…he didn’t feel like doing anything anymore.

“Guys, let’s just wait till tomorrow. I’ve got to work on a few things anyway.”

All the guys agreed and went their separate ways, John heading to his place even though the other guys had plans to meet up later. His mind was on overdrive trying to figure out what was wrong and it was making him sick to his stomach. He’d been in his house for a while before he finally figured there had been something bothering her before. He had nothing to do with it. John smiled to himself, knowing there couldn’t possibly have been something he’d done wrong.

Now happier and with his mind clear, he called up the guys and agreed to going over to the nearby bar in order to get a few drinks later.