I Want It All

Lyle was usually fine when Alex went out of town. In fact, it barely even phased her. Well, yeah, she missed him when he wasn’t there, of course she did. How could she not? She didn’t want to chock it up to the fact that…well, okay, with everything that had happened, it was possible she missed him more. He had been a hell of a lot more supportive than she had expected. So now that he was gone on tour, she really missed him.

Even though she hated admitting that.

It was close to three weeks during his tour and, while she talked to him every day, it wasn’t quite the same thing as seeing him every day. Facetime just didn’t cut it, texting didn’t cut it, even Skyping didn’t cut it. She wanted to take a few days to go see him but their schedules just never lined up. She chocked it up to fate, even though she wasn’t a big believer in that whole…belief system.

Wednesdays were her least favorite days, and they were only made worse now that Erika was back on tour with the boys and unable to join Lyle for lunch. She settled for getting a Coke icee and a large fudge round from Speedway down the block and eating at her desk. She scrolled through YouTube just for the hell of it when her phone rang next to her.

“Jackary, what’s going on?” Lyle asked, setting her icee aside and leaning back in her chair.

”Just missing my Lyle. How’s LA without me?

“Not that much,” she joked. “How’s tour?”

”Pretty good. Alex’s voice is shot right now. He’s on vocal rest.”

Lyle laughed. “Are you serious? That must be a challenge for him,” she commented.

Jack laughed. ”Yeah, he’s abusing his free text messaging and the notes on his iPhone.”

“I am glad I’m not on that tour bus right now,” she said with a slight laugh.

”So I wanna run something by you.”

“Okay, shoot.”

”We have a show in New York next Tuesday, and a day off on Wednesday. You should fly out and see us.

Lyle nodded thoughtfully. “So you want me to take off work to fly out and see you?”

”Yeah, definitely.”

“I mean, I already took a vacation week—“

”So you aren’t allowed more than ten days off in a year?”

“Well, yeah, but I want to make a good impression since it’s a new job—“

”Hadn’t you been interning there for over a year before they hired you?”

“Well, yeah, but—“

”Stop making excuses and book a flight. Do it now,” Jack snapped before hanging up the phone.

Lyle paused, looking down at her phone before tossing it aside. She shrugged, pulling up Southwest Airlines on her laptop and booking a flight. She was pretty sure that even if she didn’t, Jack would’ve found a way to do it for her.

+

Lyle instantly regretted not bringing a thicker jacket when she stepped out of the cab in New York City. En route to the hotel that Jack had texted her, she was surprised to feel a chill in the air—though she shouldn’t have considering it was almost November. She paid the cab driver and swung the strap of her overnight bag over her shoulder before making her way into the hotel. She avoided the elevator, choosing to walk the four flights until she made it to room four-seventeen. Before she even had a chance to knock, the door was open and Alex was almost running into her.

“Woa—hey—wha—“ Alex stuttered, shaking his head.

Lyle dropped her bag and wrapped her arms around Alex’s waist, burying her head in his chest.

Alex hugged her tight before pulling away sharply. “Wait, what are you doing here?”

“Jack called me?” Lyle told him, more of a question than a statement.

“Jack?”

“Didn’t he…tell you?” she asked.

Alex shook his head. “Jackary?!”

“Should I have not said anything?” she asked, scratching the back of her neck.

Alex grabbed her arm and pulled her into the room.

“Alex, my bag—“

“I got it,” he told her, letting her go and grabbing her bag before shutting the door behind him. He walked further into the room, setting the bag down on his bed before crossing his arms. “Look what I found in the hallway, Jack,” Alex commented.

Lyle smiled, unzipping her faux leather jacket and tossing it on top of her bag. “Surprise?”

Jack smiled and nearly tackled Lyle in a hug. “Lyle, I missed you! How are you?! Why are you here?! This is such a big surprise!”

Lyle laughed. “Jack, you—“

“So surprised!” Jack interrupted, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “What a surprise.”

“Yeah, you look surprised,” Alex muttered dryly.

“I don’t…what’s the big deal?” Lyle asked, looking between the two of them.

“A word, Jack?” Alex asked.

Jack bit his lip before following Alex into the bathroom, leaving Lyle and Erika alone in the room. “What’s up?”

“What is your problem?” Alex asked quietly, shutting the door behind him.

“What problem?”

“You brought Lyle out here? Why?”

Jack shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe so you can man up?” he offered.

Alex paused. “Don’t interfere, Jack—“

“I’m not interfering. I’m giving you a gentle push,” Jack told him. “No pressure.”

“Really? Because I feel pressure,” Alex commented.

Jack shrugged again. “Not my intention.”

Alex sighed.

“It’s, uh, supposed to motivate you to, yanno, tell her how you feel,” Jack suggested.

+

Lyle jumped slightly as Alex slammed the bathroom door shut. “He, uh, really didn’t know that I was coming, did he?”

Erika shook her head. “I knew, though.”

“Why didn’t Jack tell Alex? He didn’t tell me it was supposed to be top-secret or anything,” Lyle commented.

Erika shrugged and sat down on the bed, patting the space next to her. “So how have you been?”

Lyle joined her on the bed and hugged her best friend. “Good. Just missing you guys.”

“How are you…feeling?” Erika asked.

With a sigh, Lyle pulled away. “I’m good.”

She nodded.

“So what are you guys doing on your day off tomorrow?” Lyle asked.

“Scavenger hunt!” Jack announced walking out of the bathroom.

Lyle paused. “A scavenger hunt?”

Jack nodded. “All around the hotel and areas within the block. Nothing too crazy, Lyle, we’re not completely insane—“

“Pretty close,” Lyle interrupted.

Jack laughed. “Yes, pretty close,” he admitted. “But anyway. It’s a Halloween scavengers hunt. So we’re all going to dress in costume—“

“What if we don’t have costumes?” Lyle asked.

“Alex, make your woman stop interrupting me,” Jack said.

Lyle scoffed.

Alex shrugged and leaned against the wall. “Lyle, stop interrupting him,” he told her with absolutely no force behind it.

“Yes, master,” she muttered sarcastically.

“Hey, I actually like the sound of that,” Alex said with a smile.

Lyle narrowed her eyes and grabbed her tube of chapstick from her pocket, throwing it across the room at him. “Still like it?”

Alex caught the chapstick easily, opening it and applying some to his lips. “Definitely.”

Lyle rolled her eyes.

“Anyway!” Jack said, clapping his hands and getting their attention.

“Guys, pay attention to Jack before he cries,” Erika said with a smile on her face.

Jack pouted. “No one ever pays attention to me.”

“Except you’re too hyper for anyone to ignore,” Alex commented.

“Go on, Jack, I promise to stop trying to interrupt you,” Lyle told him.

“Thank you,” Jack said with a nod. “Anyway. We will be in costume. Flyzik, Vinny, and Evan are working on the details and hints right now. Tomorrow, we shall scavenge. And hunt. On a scavenger hunt. In costume.”

Lyle paused before slowly raising her hand.

“Yes, Lyle?” Jack asked.

“Do I have to participate?”

“Yes. Any other questions?”

“Do I have to wake up early?” Alex asked.

“Nine-thirty?”

Alex groaned. “Dammit.”

“Can Lyle and I go shopping for costumes before the concert?” Erika asked him.

Jack nodded. “Yeah, find me something, too. I feel like I want to be a cat.”

Lyle laughed. “Only you, Jackary. Only you.”