Time and Consequence

"That's what you were mad about? Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Garrett asked as he and the guys sat around Sadie in disbelief. She had just told them what happened the night before with the fans following her. Sadie shrugged and bit her nails, feeling a bit weird for being the center of attention again. She didn't want to create drama or make the guys stressed. "It's really not a big deal," she promised, but Jared spoke up -"Something should be said, though." Pat nodded, "Yeah, it's not right." Garrett got up from the couch and ran a hand through his hair, "I'll say something...somehow." He would make a post on tumblr or twitter, just vague enough to not seem like a jerk, but still get to the point. "If it happens again, just let us know," John said before getting up to get a drink. "Yeah, we'll handle it," Kennedy explained. Sadie blushed but sighed with relief. It was scary being followed, no matter who was doing it. The guys got off the bus to stretch their legs, as they had a few days off before their last few shows. Garrett stayed behind and sat by Sadie, putting his arm around her, "I'm sorry people followed you. That's really...annoying." he couldn't picture their fans doing something like that. He genuinely looked upset. "It's alright," Sadie said sheepishly, checking the time on her phone. "When's Zoe getting here?" Garrett asked, glancing at the screen. Zoe was flying in for a couple days. No one really minded an extra person staying with them, heck, they had random friends staying with them most of the time, anyway. "Soon. Thanks for letting her come," Sadie smiled as she could feel Garrett pull her in closer and when he kissed her. They stayed wrapped up together like that for a little while before pulling apart at the sound of a knock on the door. Zoe. Sadie excitedly jumped up, rushing to greet her without even realizing her hair being all messy from Garrett's hands, or her shirt slumped off her shoulder. Garrett grinned at how happy Sadie was when the door swung open. "AH! I can't believe you're here!" Sadie exclaimed as she grabbed her friend in a hug. Zoe stepped onto the bus and plopped her bag down, "I know! I missed you so much!" Another hug.Garrett waved hello and the three of them talked about what was going on in their lives. Soon, everyone was reunited on the bus and Kennedy and John seemed to be glued to Zoe's side. "Play it cool, man," Garrett advised them. Sadie was thoroughly entertained by the attention her best friend was getting. Zoe pulled her blonde hair into a braid and leaned against the counter as Kennedy was describing the night's plans. "We'd love to but Sadie and I already have plans," Zoe informed. Kennedy nodded, trying to play it off cool. "If that's alright..." Sadie quickly added. She felt that she should do whatever they wanted since she was staying with them and all. The last thing she wanted was to be a burden. Pat laughed, "Sade, you don't have to ask permission." He noticed Sadie was sort of an awkward, nervous person at times. Practically the perfect match for Garrett. "Yeah but if you guys want to do something, I don't want to..." She rambled and bit at her nails again. Garrett smirked at her. She had been traveling with them for how long , all comfortable with each other, and still seemed worry about upsetting them. "Too bad, Sadie. We're going!" Zoe sang as she grabbed Sadie's arm to the bathroom to get ready. Zoe was obviously the more outgoing, abrasive friend. The guys dispersed to do their own thing on the bus and come up with new plans since the girls weren't joining them. The bathroom was cramped with one person in it, let alone two. "Damn, how do you get anything done?" Zoe asked, gripping the sink as she leaned over to apply her makeup. Sadie laughed and said "I don't really do much," as she pointed to Zoe's makeup bag. While Zoe wore makeup, she did it tastefully, unlike Carly. "And how do you shower?" Zoe pointed to the little shower. Not as often as I do at home, Sadie wanted to admit but decided Zoe would just be too shocked and faint. Sadie shrugged and giggled again. Soon, the girls stood ready, looking at each other in the mirror. Sadie had on one of Zoe's black off the shoulder dresses and flats. Nothing too fancy, but definitely less casual than what she usually wore. Her auburn hair was braided and then unbraided, making it more wavy. Her necklace of course stayed fastened around her neck. Zoe wore black jeans with a navy blue shirt that brought out her eyes, but when the girls emerged from the bathroom, it was hard to tell who the guys were staring at more. Sadie turned red and pushed her hair behind her ear as she realized that eyes weren't just on Zoe. "Wow," Garrett went over to Sadie to take her in. He slid an arm around her and kissed her on the cheek grinned. "Aww," Zoe cooed, grabbing her bag and phone from the seat John was sitting on. He looked up at her and tripped over his own words as if starstruck while trying to say "Have fun." Sadie and Zoe waved goodbye to the m and stepped off the bus, heading towards the town. "You and Garrett, huh?" Zoe pried as they walked down the sidewalk. Sadie grinned, "You and Kennedy..er.. John? huh?" Zoe playfully whacked Sadie," Shut up. But really. How serious are you two?" Sadie blushed as she thought about it. It had been a little over a month since she started dating Garrett, but she could already tell it was different with him than anyone else. She already felt more strongly for him than anyone else before, also. "I...guess, pretty? I don't know." "You should've seen how he looked at you when we finished getting ready. He's got it bad," Zoe grinned. Sadie couldn't help but let out a big smile. Garrett was adorable. "What about John and Kennedy? You should see how they look at you," Sadie pointed out. It was true. While there were a few girls here and there, they always seemed to come back to Zoe. And she wasn't even there half the time. "Oh shh. Anyway, we're here!" Zoe opened the wooden door of a resturant with dim lighting and a fancy atmosphere, but also had a club/bar type room in the back. They made their way to the back of the building and ordered their drinks. "To...life," Zoe decided as she and Sadie clinked their glasses together. After a few drinks, they were finally buzzed and mingled with the crowd dancing. They were having a good time until they reached the bar for another round and saw...."Sadie!" Carly. What the hell was she doing here? Sadie thought. It was one thing if they were still in the same state as before, but this was creepy. Was she following them all around like the pathetic groupie she was? "Shit," Sadie cursed as she put on a fake smile before facing Carly. Zoe rolled her eyes, finally putting a face to the name. She had heard all about Carly through text messages, emails, and from the band on the bus. "What, no Garrett?" Carly snickered as she fixed the pink bow on her head. Zoe couldn't help but notice how fake Carly looked. Her skinny frame was hard to look at, and her makeup was just caked on. "Not tonight.. I'm with my best friend, uh... Zoe!" Sadie slurred. No matter how mad she was to see Carly, being drunk just didn't help her sound put together or show her annoyance. Zoe plastered a grin on her face and reached over to shake hands with Carly. Her nails were acrylic and jabbed Zoe's palm. It took all Zoe had not to start a throw down with this girl, and if she was any drunker, she just might have. Sadie on the other hand, just wanted to leave. The night life scene was more of Zoe's forte. After a couple more drinks and about an hour later of putting up with Carly, the mood seemed to lighten up. "You guys wanna dance?" Carly asked, pointing the dance floor. The girls nodded and danced with each other, avoiding talking as much as possible. Carly noticed a black cord with a silvery-circle, a necklace,around Sadie's neck. It was modest and edgy, probably something Garrett gave her. Carly scoffed and tried not to vomit right there. From what she gathered from the information Sadie had actually let out about their relationship, they were still going strong. Then she had an idea. She tapped Sadie's back, "Your necklace is falling off!" Her voice filled with fake concern. "Will you fix it?" Sadie turned around to face her, her hair was starting to get damp with sweat, her face shiny and flushed. Carly nodded, feeling a pinch of jealousy that even when drunk and sweaty, Sadie still looked cute. There was no makeup pooled under her eyes, no hair spray sticking to her forehead. Carly fiddled around with the cord to make it seem tighter, and quickly, when no one was looking, she swiped it from Sadie's neck and dropped it in her own bag. No one even noticed. She grinned and whispered in Sadie's ear,"All set." Sadie nodded her thank you and continued dancing. "I think I'm gonna go, see ya." Carly excused herself a good 5 minutes later, Sadie's necklace now in her possession.

"Are they even like...here?" Zoe asked as she knocked on the bus door with one hand, her heels in the other. "I dunno," Sadie hiccuped loudly. They exploded with laughter as if that was the funniest thing ever. Sadie jumped around in place, freezing now that they were away from the sweaty crowd. The door finally swung open and Kennedy looked confused as the girls stumbled in. Looks like they had fun, he thought. "They're back!" he announced as the guys looked up from their take out with amused faces. "Have fun?" Garrett asked as he watched Sadie try to wobble out of her shoes. "Yeah!" She exclaimed, unaware of how loud she was talked. The guys snickered. "Where'd you go?" Jared asked as he made room for them to sit on the couch. "Uh, um...," Sadie tried to answer. She flopped down to the couch as John passed her and Zoe a water bottle, " can't remember." Zoe twisted and pulled at the cap on her's, and Pat finally reached over to open it for her. She gave him a loopy grin and took a sip before saying "It was somewhere...Guess who we saw?" The guys shrugged. "Carly!" Their eyes widened. "Yeah, not cool!" Sadie echoed. "How do you have a stomach that flat... like how do your organs fit?" Zoe asked, sounding bewildered. The guys laughed but were annoyed that Carly was there. "Oh god, how'd that go?" Kennedy asked. Zoe shrugged," She can't dance." Sadie and Zoe started to laugh at that until they both were too tired to move. "Zoe can sleep with me," both John and Kennedy offered. Zoe giggled, "I'm good on the couch," and soon, she was out like a light. Garrett helped Sadie get into their bunk. bringing an extra water bottle with him. She would need it. "I need PJs" Sadie decided, crawling over to the edge of the bunk. Garrett stopped her, "Just use this," and threw a shirt in her direction. She didn't try to hide or tell Garrett to look away, she just pulled her dress off and changed before he could react. He turned red and couldn't help but grin at what he got to see for a few seconds. They got under the covers and he pulled her close to him, her usually cold skin was warm. She noticed the water and snuggled closer to him. " Think I'm falling love you," Sadie tried to say, her tongue thick. Garrett's ears perked up. "What?" "Thanks for takin care of me," She ended up murmuring, closing her eyes as she started to fall asleep. Garrett rolled over to kiss her forehead, knowing that he felt the same way.

The next morning, Sadie grabbed her head in pain. The sun seemed to explode in the bus, everything was so bright. But it was quiet, maybe it was early. Sadie couldn't tell. She could barely remember what time she even went to bed. "Ouch," she winced and closed her eyes again. Her skin felt tight and her stomach queasy. "Morning," Garrett gave his half smile as he turned to face her. "What happened last night?" she asked, his soft eyes comforted her. "You might want to ask Zoe about that. I'm not entirely sure. But you were out of it," he explained. "Oh god," Sadie groaned. " That bad?" Garrett laughed. "Did I say anything weird...or anything?" She asked, biting at her nails again. She tended to blurt out secrets or things she was afraid to see when she was drunk. Garrett sat up straight and looked into her eyes, "Well, you did say something...but you were really out of it." "What?" "Something about falling in love with me, you know. Not that I couldn't tell from the start," he joked. Sadie looked at him. His wild hair, his kind eyes, the smile. His personality. It was true. She had felt that way for a couple weeks but didn't want to scare him. "Well...yeah. That is true, I guess I am." she quickly said, afraid of his reaction. He moved the hair from her face, "Sadie...I-" "I'm sorry if that's too fast or anything I mean I don't-" "Sadie!" Garrett said again, wrapping an arm around her. " Yeah?" She winced, ready for his response. "I feel the same way."