Memories That Fade Like Photographs

“Lulu, wake up.” I heard my aunt whisper as she nudged me awake. “Hmm?” I sat up sleepily. My aunt silently laughed before she answered, “Lulu, you need to wake up and get ready for school. The boys won’t get up for another hour so I suggest you shower fast.” I nodded my head I tiredly walked to my closet and picked out my outfit. I decided on wearing my red Blink 182 shirt and a pair of skinny jeans that I took from Brooke about a year ago.

I showered quickly and got dressed. I blow dried my hair and heated up my curling iron as I brushed my teeth, put on mascara, a bracelet to match my outfit, and my necklace that held my parents wedding rings. When the curling iron was hot enough I started curling my hair.

I turned off the iron and put it in a drawer and walked into my bedroom where the boys were wide awake and dressed. “Morning.” I said as I walked to my dresser and pulled out a pair of blue socks. I put on the socks and then put on my pair of gray vans. I stood up from my seat and saw that both boys were gone. “Alex, Jack! Where did you go?”

“Bathroom!” they yelled in unison. I rolled my eyes and went to the bathroom where they were brushing there teeth. “When you two are done, I’ll be downstairs eating.” They both said something that sounded like and an okay, but with their mouths full of toothpaste and spit; I laughed and just walked away. Before I left my room I grabbed my phone and put it in my pocket, and then grabbed my book bag and my favorite fedora. I walked out of my room and downstairs to the kitchen where my aunt was dressed in a business suit and reading the news paper at the dining table.

“Good morning Aunt Katherine.” I smiled as she put down the news paper and smiled back saying, “Good morning Lucy. Did you sleep well?”

I nodded, “Yes, I did. Where are you going today? You seem a lot more business like than usual.”

“Lucy, this is how I usually dress for work.”

I gave her a quizzical look, “Where do you work again?”

She smiled and rolled her eyes, “Lucy, your father and I both were given companies when our parents passed away. You remember how Grandpa Bill owned that record company?” she asked and I nodded, “Well, he gave it to your father and when Grandma Ruth passed she gave me her hotel.”

“Really?” I asked with wide eyes. She laughed and nodded her head, “Yes, really. It’s really popular too, which is why there isn’t that many.”

“How many are there?”

“Well, there’s one here, as well as four others across the country. And then there’s one in Paris.”

“I never knew that.”

“That’s because you’ve been focused on the music with your father. You’ve always loved it.” She complimented me.

“I guess so.” As soon as I finished my sentence the boys came downstairs and said good morning. I looked at the clock and saw we had a few minutes till we had to leave so I sat at the table and pulled out my phone. I saw that I had a few messages and checked them all.



When I got a message back from her she just said okay and I went on to my other messages. I got one from Chase who said to have a wonderful first day of school and I quickly thanked him and went onto the next message from Rian.



I shrugged at the response and called his number. I waited three rings and he picked up. “Hello?”

“Hey Rian, you wanted me to call you?” I said into my phone earning the three pairs of eyes to land on me.

“Yeah, I was wondering what happened with Alex and Jack? Why is Alex’s car in your driveway?”

I laughed, “They spent the night and are sitting here staring at me as I talk to you.”
“Okay, just wondering. Do you still want a ride to school? Or can I just tag along with you guys?”

I looked up at Alex and asked, “Hey Alex is it okay if we take your car to school and can Rian come with?” he nodded his head and I smiled before I said to Rian, “Yes, you can. Be by the car in, like, 30 seconds.” I said, noticing we should leave.

“Okay, bye.” He said and then hung up before I said anything. I laughed as I put my phone in my pocket and stood up. “Come on boys, it’s time to get to school. Bye Aunt Kay.”

“Bye Lucy, bye boys. Have a nice first day at school.” She smiled and took a sip of her coffee. We grabbed our things and went out the door meeting Rian by Alex’s car.
“Good morning Rian, did you have a nice night with Kara?” Alex cooed at the bigger boy.

“Shut up Lex. And yes, I did. More than you’ve gotten.” He mumbled the last part.
“I could get a lot, thank you very much.”

“Okay, Ew! I do not need to be hearing this.” I said at the two boys who were arguing over their sex lives. They turned and faced me and said that they were sorry and we got into the car and drove off to school. Alex and Jack sat in the front seat while Rian and I sat in the back. I pulled out my phone and dialed Brooke’s number, hoping the boys wouldn’t mind.

“Lucy! You have a lot to tell me!” My best friend screamed into the phone. I heard Rian laugh and Jack turned around and gave me a questioning look. I put the phone back to my ear and said, “Good morning to you too Brooke. I’ve had a lovely day yesterday and today’s going to be extra special since I’m on my way to school. How are you?”

“Sorry, and I’m glad you had a good day. Now, where was I…? TELL ME EVERYTHING!”

I laughed at my best friend, “What exactly do you want to know?”

“Hold on are you with them now?”

“Yes, I am. We’re all in the same car.”

“I want to talk to them!”

“Why?” I asked giving her a hard time. Rian laughed again so I handed him the phone which he gladly took. “It’s nice to hear from you again, Brooke. How is Atlanta…? Oh, you don’t want to talk about you…?” there was a slight pause before Rian burst into a fit of laughter handing me my phone back. I put it to my ear and hastily asked, “What did you tell him?!”

“Well, I didn’t want to talk about me because I wanted to talk about how you want to get down and busy with Mr. Alex Gaskarth.” She stated simply.

“Brooklyn Elizabeth Taylor, that is a lie and you know it!” I yelled at her through my phone. The car was put into park and the ignition stopped and I realized we were at school. But before I could tell her my phone was taken away from Alex who turned my phone on speaker and said, “Hello, this is Alex Gaskarth”- then Jack added, “And Jack Barakat. Who is this we are speaking to?”

Brooke laughed a little more and finally said, “I’m Brooklyn but you can call me Brooke. And I’m Lucy’s best friend from Atlanta.”

“Well, it’s nice talking to you, but we made it to school and Lucy told us she doesn’t want to be late her first day so we have to go inside now and get our schedules and locker information in the next half hour and then we’ll have short classes. We get out at 11:50, so she’ll call you when she can afterwards.” Alex stated nicely.

“And if she doesn’t, she might be busy because I’ll be ravishing her body in the supply closet.” Jack stated quickly and got out of the car. “I’ll explain that later, but right now I have to beat the shit out of a skunk. Bye, Brooke.” I said and hung up my phone. I opened the car door, grabbed my book bag and shut the door. Alex and Rian followed closely behind me as I looked around for Jack. When I find him I swear to god, he’s not going to know what hit him. I might be over-reacting but he didn’t have to run away. Now, I just want to give him a piece of my mind.

When I found the tall lanky boy walking quickly I started yelling for him and keeping him in sight, “Jack…! Jack, get your ass back over here…! Jack Barakat, don’t you dare go in there!” I said as he ran in the boys’ bathroom. I groaned in annoyance and turned to Alex and Rian. “You two go get your schedules. Can someone get mine?”
Alex nodded, “Yeah, I’ll get yours. But what are you going to do?”

“I’m going to beat the living shit out of him.”

“Are you going to wait for him till he comes out?” Rian asked.

I smirked, “If he thinks that’s what might happen he’s in for a surprise.” I said as I turned around and walked into the boys’ bathroom. There was one boy peeing and another washing there hands and when they both saw me they smiled but I angrily said, “Where is he?”

They gave me a questioning look and my patience quickly ran out and I yelled at them to get out. I looked below for any feet but I came up with none. I sighed and then spoke loudly because I knew he was in here, “Fine, Jack. Hide in here for your dear life. I’m going to get my schedule so I’m not late.” Then I walked over to the door and opened it, but I didn’t leave. I let it close and I waited patiently. I heard someone sigh and then a jump. One of the bathroom doors squeaked open and then footsteps came my way. I smirked evilly as the body stopped dead in there tracks not to run me over but then he quickly replied, “Shit…”

I looked up at the lanky boy and made a tisking noise, “If I like eavesdropping, I’m pretty sure that means I like tricking and waiting for my pray. I’m not going to hurt you though because I don’t roll that way, but I swear to god if you do that one more time my barrel will roll down the wrong track.”

He sighed in defeat, “Fine, I’m sorry. I promise I won’t do it again, but I have a question.”

“Yes?”

“Do you like me or Alex more?”

“I barely know you two.”

“Fine, who do you find the most attracting?”

“That’s for me to know and you to find out.” I smirked and then opened the bathroom door. I saw Rian and Alex standing there with Kara and Matt. None of them saw me yet, but when I was pulled back into the bathroom and let out a squeak they all turned and saw the door close. Jack’s lips were crashed onto mine and I couldn’t help but to kiss back. God, why does he have to be a good kisser? He pulled away and then left the bathroom leaving me standing there in shock. When I shook it away and walked out, random kids who walked by gave me a weird look and I just laughed because they had no idea.

“Welcome back, how did it go with Jack?” Rian asked and I just realized that the skunk haired boy wasn’t with us. “He’s getting his schedule. Now, what happened?”

“Well, I kicked two guys out, couldn’t find him so I told him I was leaving but I didn’t. Then he came out of his hiding spot and I just told him that I’m not going to hit him but if he does something like that again, I’m going to hit him.” I said, leaving out the last part.

“Do you think he’ll stop?” Matt asked.

I shrugged, “That all depends on him. Alex, do you have my schedule?”

He nodded his head and handed it to me saying, “Yeah, and I hope you don’t mind, but I looked at it and we all of our classes together besides one.”

“And what would that be?”

“Well, while I’m in Chemistry, you’ll be in French.” He explained and I nodded. Kara took my paper that read my schedule and smiled, “We have History, French, Lunch, and Gym together. Now, let’s get you to your locker. Guys, come to locker 1149 when Jack gets here, okay?” They all nodded and Kara and I went off to my locker.

“So, I heard you squeak and you got pulled back into the bathroom. What happened?”
I started blushing, “Jack kissed me.”

“He kissed you!” she raised her voice but I didn’t do anything about it. “What do you mean?”

“Like he pulled me back in, kissed me, and then left. I guess because I told him that only I will know who’s the most attractive.”

“Between…?”

I sighed, “He asked who I liked more, him or Alex. And I told him that I barely know them to decided so then he asked which one I find the most attractive.”

She nodded and we walked up to my locker and opened it, “Okay, I see.” She continued. “Well, I know that Alex and Jack spent the night so what happened then?”
I laughed, “Well, Jack challenged me to DDR and when it was nearing the end Alex told us to make a bet. He said that I’d have to kiss him whenever he wanted and I said he’d have to do what I’d say for a week. I won and then he kissed me saying that he couldn’t help himself.”

“Wait, he did that in front of Alex?”

I nodded, “Yeah, why?”

“Like I said to you at the bonfire, he likes you and he looked jealous. I’m surprised he didn’t do anything. Usually, when Alex and Jack both like the same girl, they’ll fight about it and if it looks like Jack is winning, Alex would be a prissy bitch to the girl.”

“Let me guess, he never got those girls?”

“Nope, Jack always got them.”

“It’s like a game for them.” I said more to myself.

“I know, sometimes I feel bad though when Jack wins, because once when he finds someone new he’ll treat that girl like she isn’t worth his attention and snap at her. It’s weird because you’d never see Jack like that. But, I don’t know if he’d change for you?”

“What makes you say that?”

“Well, you’re different than the other girls. They were all blonde, and you’re a brunette. They were stupid and cheerleaders and you’re very smart, and I’m guessing very literate?”

“I guess?” I said not understanding.

She shrugged, “Well, in the end, you’re just different, but don’t let any of this get to your head. You’ll look cute with either of them and you get along with them both. So, if you end up dating one and breaking up, I’m sure you’ll stay friends because you’re friends with the others best friends.”

I laughed, “Thanks, Kara.” I shut my locker after we ended our conversation and the boys came over to us with Jack. He smiled when he saw me and I smiled back. He took my schedule and compared it with his. He frowned and then smiled and then frowned and then smiled again. “There are the ups and downs, but we have Study Hall, Lunch, Music, and Gym together. I was told you have all of your classes with Lex, except French. So, I had to see what we had together.”

I rolled my eyes, “Okay Jack.” And then the bell rang, we all said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. Rian and Kara said that they’ll meet me and Alex in class and we nodded our heads and went off without them. “I didn’t say this earlier, but I really like your shirt.” Alex commented after a moment of silence.

“You listen to Blink?” I asked.

“Yeah, they’re my favorite band.”

“Mine too; Brooke never listened to my music. Actually, we never had the same interest in most things.” I rambled.

“Well, you should’ve had some of the same interests.”

“Funny, we always obsessed over music, yet they were never the same. It was mainly us wanting a band. Her as singer, me as guitarist; we could never find anyone though.”
He nodded, “You should play with us sometimes. I’m sure we could fill you in on a couple songs we’re working on.”

“I’d like that. By the way, what is your band name?”

He laughed, “We’re called All Time Low.”

“Where did you come up with that?”

“We got it from a song by New Found Glory.”

“That’s cool, what song?”

“Head on Collision.”

“Good song.” I smiled and he nodded. We walked the rest of the way quietly and I couldn’t help but notice people were staring. I looked up at Alex and whispered, “Why are people staring?”

“I don’t know? I guess, we’ll find out soon though.”

“How do you know?”

“News travels fast here, and Jack or Kara will find out quickly and tell us. They’re social butterflies.” I laughed at his statement and couldn’t believe he just called Jack that. It made him sound very girly.

“Well, as long as there aren’t rumors saying I’m a whore than I’m good.” I said matter-of-factly. If rumors like that did start going around I’d go ape-shit and I’d hunt down the person who started it, and then my barrel will roll off track. I could care less if I’m the new girl.

Alex and I walked into our History class and sat down in the back of the room, saving the front two seats for Kara and Rian, who joined us not even a minute later. Kara looked like she was about to burst to pieces, indicating that she found out something. I rolled my eyes at her and said, “Kara if you have something to share, please do tell.”

“Okay, well Rian and I were only a few steps behind you guys but I over heard some girl say something about you so I stopped and I talked to her. She said that the new girl, which is you, said that you were neighbors with Rian and he nodded to her and she continued saying that people are saying you only moved here because you wanted them to sign for your dad’s record company and you got in Alex and Jack’s pants just to have them sign for you.” She said quickly. My eyes grew wide at her story. How did people find out about my dad’s record company? And who the hell came up with that?

I started laughing and they looked at me weirdly and I calmed down to say, “Seriously, who would come up with that? That’s probably the worst rumor I’ve ever heard! Plus, shouldn’t it be the other way around? That would sound more logical? They should be getting in my pants, not me in theirs.”

“Your dad owns a record company?” Rian asked.

I nodded, “Yeah, but he gave it to me, so you could say it’s mine. I don’t know how to run one yet, so I gave it to Brooke’s dad till I figure out if that’s what I want to do.”

“Kara? Do you know who started this rumor?” Alex asked suspiciously. He looked a little upset, which I didn’t understand why. But when I looked over his shoulder there was an evilly smirked Lisa in the opposite corner of the room. She winked and blew a kiss toward me and I instantly clenched my jaw. “I think I know.” I said through my teeth.

“Lulu, it’s okay. Don’t let her get to you; you could always get back at her. It’s really easy.” Kara said as if it didn’t matter. I softened a little but then grew confused, “What do you mean, Kara?”

“Well, you’re in a group of people that she talked to only when she was with Alex, which was a lot. We have lots of stuff on her that we could use and I’m sure Lex, could tell you some stuff that only he knows.”

“That’d be great but it’s not that bad of a rumor. I just need something that would give her a lesson on not to mess with me, like, a prank.” I smirked evilly.

“What kind of prank?” Rian said slowly. I looked at him and the other too and I looked at each of them as I spoke, “A very messy prank.”