Fuel to the Fire

September 16th was written on the blackboard. The tour was gonna start today and I wasn’t going. Fuck my life. Everybody tried to convince my parents but nothing worked.

I stared at the blackboard again and sighed, not wanting to go home, because none of the boys will be there.
I caught Austin smiling at me and I smiled back. He really wanted something with me, but I tried to avoid him. I talked about him to Lauren and Gabi, and they said that I should be honest with him. In the end, we decided just to be friends. After that party, everyone started talking to me or tried to be my friend. I don’t know why; I’m a weirdo. They would always stop by my locker or say hi in the hallway.

“That’s all for today!” Mr. Davis said, interrupting my thoughts. We still had 15 minutes to do whatever we wanted. I went to my locker, gathering my stuff.
“YOU GUYS NEED TO SEE THIS!” A girl said, breathless. I threw my bag over my shoulder and walked towards the doors. My jaw dropped when I saw what she was talking about. Eight people standing in front of a huge gray bus, smiling at me.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” I all but shouted, running towards them.
“Going on tour” Pat said.
“But mom and dad…”
“You know how much they love me. I convinced them” Garrett said with a laugh. I raised an eyebrow.
“Really?”
“No” said John, “we actually needed bitch-“
“Hey!” Lauren shouted.
“Girls” John said, looking at her “to help with the merch and stuff, and now you’re coming with us.”
“But I don’t even have clothes” I started.
“I took care of that” Lauren smiled.
“School?”
“You’re gonna graduate online” Pat said.
“I…”
“Shut the fuck up, Amanda Leigh! Are you coming or not?” Garrett yelled. I showed him my middle finger and he laughed.
“Let’s gooooo!” Kennedy sang, pulling us to the bus.

“Where am I sleeping?” I asked, as I felt the bus moving.
“With me” Garrett spoke softly.
“Me and you, together? For a whole month?”
“Yeah, why not?”
“Because you know how much I love to touch you. I won’t be able to keep my hands away from this” I placed my hands on his ass and squeezed a little. Garrett jumped.
“Well, that’s not a problem” Garrett scooted me up in his arms and carried me bridal style to his bunk and dropped me, jumping on top of me. The only way to stop whatever he was gonna do is…
“GUYS, I’M ABOUT TO GIVE GARRETT A HICKEY. WHO WANTS TO SEE THIS?”
“No!” Garrett shouted. His mouth found its way to my neck; he sucked the soft skin of my neck and I tried to muffle a moan.

I felt his lips stretch into a smile as I grabbed a fistful of his hair, pressing my body to his.

“Garrett…”
“THEY’RE HAVING SEX!” John Ohh cried suddenly and I giggled.
“Now everybody knows that you’re mine” Garrett said, kissing the red mark on my neck. I sighed, I could easily move my head down and kiss his lips. We were pratically boyfriend and girlfriend, right?
“Stop talking about it, she’s my sister” Pat spoke in a disgusted voice.
Garrett carried me back to the “living room” and sat down with me on his lap.
“She’s yours, Garrett? Since when?” Lauren asked, in a knowing tone.
“Actually, I’m my mom’s” I said. Tessa cupped my chin, tilting my head back a little.
“It’ll leave a reeeeeally good mark” She said, examining my neck.

“Why are you so childish?” Pat asked. I ignored him, answering Tessa.
“Garrett knows how to suck” I nodded then covered my mouth. I didn’t realize what I said could be taken in several ways. Garrett shifted uncomfortably and scratched the back of my his neck while the boys laughed at him.

“Is that hard for you to simply shut up?” he whispered to me.
“Sometimes I just need to keep my mouth shut. Sorry Garebear” I smiled.
“Oh yeah Leigh, he really knows how to suck?” John Ohh mocked me.
“Seriously, stop it. My brother is here, it’s disgusting” I frowned. “Where’s Tim, by the way?”
“Wait, you make fun of us, but we can’t make fun of you?” Jared countered me. I stuck my tongue out at him.
“He’s gonna meet us in Phoenix” Garrett said, ignoring his friend.
“And what are we gonna do while we don’t get there?”
Everybody looked at John.
“Uh… Girls, go get ready. We can stop to eat something, and then go to the venue” He shrugged. I got up and dragged Lauren back to the bunks, with Tessa and Gabi on my heels.

“Where are my clothes?” I asked, louder then the usual.
“On Pat’s bunk” Tessa answered me from the bathroom.
Nice, I thought. Pat’s bunk was on top of Garrett’s. The fact that I am short didn’t help.
“I think I could use some help here” I said “Jooooooooohn!”
John pulled my suitcase as he passed by me.
“Thanks.”
I placed my suitcase on Garrett’s bed and opened it, trying to find something to wear. I gasped when I saw all those black-lacy things.
“What the fuck, Lauren?” I yelled. I heard her laugh in the bathroom.
“Believe me when I say one day you’ll be grateful.”
“What’s wrong?” Garrett asked, appearing in the corridor.
“Nothing” I quickly closed my suitcase. He looked at me, down at the suitcase, then back at me. I smiled sweetly at him. He sighed and walked back to the living room.

“Are you ready?” I asked Garrett. They had done all the “we like to party” stuff and now were just chillin. I could hear A Rocket To The Moon rocking out on the stage.
“I was born ready” He answered me, a huge grin on his face. I rolled my eyes.
“It’s time” Max said, opening the door. They all exchanged a look.
Tim took my hand as we walked to the stage. I saw my parents there, they smiled and waved at us. My mom hugged Pat and held his face on her hands.
“Good luck, baby” She smiled.
“Mom, my girlfriend is here. And my band mates. Please, stop being so…” Pat said uncomfortably “Go, kiss and hug Leigh as much as you want.”
Love you too, Pat, I thought to myself as my mom came and hugged me.
“I can’t believe I’m gonna spend a whole month without my baby girl! Oh, I think I’m gonna cry.”
I looked at Pat through narrowed eyes.
“Mom, Tim’s right there. Go and talk to him” I said, trying to get out of her grip.
“Not so soon, baby girl. What’s this?” She ran a finger along a bruise on my neck. Garrett’s hickey. I saw him snickering at me as I shivered.
“That’s a funny story, actually” I bit my lip nervously. How would I explain the whole story?
“Guys, go” Tim said, distracting her.
“Mommy, go there and give Pat a big hug” I whispered in her ear. When he was about to kiss Lauren, she pulled him into a bear-like hug. I chuckled when I saw Lauren pout. She looked at me and pursed her lips. She whispered something to Garrett and he smirked at me.
“Mom, let him go” Tim said, trying to release Pat.
“Come on, guys” Kennedy said, opening a curtain that revealed the stage. All the boys quickly kissed their girlfriends and went to the stage. Garrett looked at me, not knowing what to do. I blew him a kiss and mouthed good luck. He laughed and headed after Pat.

The show was really good; I didn’t remember the last time I had so much fun. Maybe it’s the place, we were in Phoenix, Arizona, our hometown… kinda; play in the place where you were raised, you know? The fans gone crazy with every song played and the guys were really proud of what they’ve done. I recognized many girls from my school there. They all smiled and waved when they saw me next to the stage.
They finished the show playing Into Your Arms. I saw many girls crying, and true to be told, I almost cried too. That wasn’t my favorite, but it was certainly the most beautiful song. Garrett must have seen my face, because he was laughing at me. Again. I stuck my tongue out to him when they left the stage. Garrett hugged me when they reached us in the backstage.
“Ew Garrett, you’re all sweaty!” I tried to pull away from his grip.
“Oh Mandy Moore, you’re hurting my feelings! Be a good girl and hug me back” He tightened his arms around me. I had no choice but hug him back.
“You’re a gooooood, gooooooooooood girl” he said at the same time as Tim said “the fans are waiting outside.”
“Just go. Talk to your fans, take a shower, then talk to me” I pointed at the door. He stuck his bottom lip out to me playfully.
“Don’t even try” I laughed.
“Come on, let’s give baby girl a real hug” John Ohh said. He wrapped his arms around me, just like Pat, Jared and Kennedy. They pressed their sweat bodies against me, making my shiver. I heard Garrett laugh.
“You’re all sweaty now” Kennedy smiled.
“Now go hug Gabi” I pushed him.
“No girlfriends now. The fans are waiting” I heard Max say.
“Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaax! Help me!” I yelled. He laughed and pushed John away from me.
“Thanks” I murmured, running a hand on my forehead.
Garrett and Pat left, followed by John, Jared and Kennedy. I could hear the girls screaming on the street. I looked outside, laughing at the girls screaming at my brother. That’s awkward. It’s wasn’t hard to find Garrett; he was hugging a red-haired girl with a big smile on his face. I knew that girl.
“For fuck’s sake!” I cursed.
“What?” Gabi appeared behind me, looking outside. I pointed at Rachael, who was still hugging Gare. Some girls behind them were starting to look impatient with the delay.
“Tim, do me a favor? Go outside and say that we’re leaving soon” I said, turning to him.
“Why? What’s happening?” He said looking outside. Rachael finally let Garrett go, but still held his hand.
“Why are you so jealous?” Tim poked me.
“I-I’m not jealous” I looked down at my feet.
“No visual contact” Lauren sang. When I lied, I couldn’t keep visual contact, true. I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest, looking straight at Tim.
“Please, Tim” I pleaded. He sighed and nodded. I smiled when he left.

It didn’t take too long to bring the boys back. Garrett didn’t say anything about Rachael and we also didn’t say that we had seen them. He wrapped his hands around my waist, pulling me into him.
“You smell, Leigh” he wrinkled his nose.
“That’s really sweet of you, Garrett. It’s my new perfume; it’s called John Cornelius O’Callaghan stinks” I smiled.
Pat and Jared were laughing when John opened the bathroom door.
“What did I miss?” He asked, drying his wet hair with a towel.
“Nothing, John, nothing. Now, you go shower” I pushed Garrett towards John.
“Okay, okay!” He picked up some clothes on the couch and headed to the bathroom.
We left the venue at 3 am. It took a long time to say goodbye to our parents and friends, before leaving. We still had an almost-eight-hours journey ahead until San Diego, where the boys performance on Saturday. I just wanna know what will happen. Us, on the road, for a whole month.

“I saw Leigh walking half naked in the corridor!” John cried. I heard someone pound him, probably Pat.
“She’s not half naked” Tessa said from Jared’s bunk. And I wasn’t; I was wearing a tank top and booty shorts, no one saw me. No one, but John apparently.
“How do you know? You’re not even looking at her” Someone pounded John again, probably Jared. I rolled my eyes at the silly discussion.
Garrett removed his shirt and laid down beside me.
“Heeeeeeey Garebear” I pinched his cheeks.
“Heeeeeeey Leighbear” Garrett smiled “Ready to sleep?”
“In a minute” I murmured, looking down. He gave me an confused look.
“What’s up?”
“I…” I sighed, trying to find my words “I saw you today…”
He nodded, knowing what I meant and sighed.
“Why do you have to bring this up? Me and Rachael… we’re nothing. I’m done with her and you know this. More than anyone. Leigh, don’t be like this… look at me.”
I looked up into his eyes and he kissed the tip of my nose.
“Don’t worry about it, ok? I loved her in the past, but today, who’s got my heart is you. You know it” He whispered. I nodded, a tear falling from my eye.
“Don’t cry, Leigh”
I wiped the tear from my face and sighed.
“Good. Now, ready to sleep?”
“That’s a good idea.” I cuddled into his chest, closing my eyes.
“Goodnight, Leighbear” He whispered in my ear.