Infinite

I had packed enough clothes for a week in Denver, consisting entirely of jeans, tanks, t'shirts, and hoods seeing as most of my time would be spent either in the hospital room or in the hotel that the guys had been staying at.

The rest of the bands on Warped had already cleared out of Denver the day before and headed on to their next location, but Falling in Reverse was holed up in a hotel nearest to the hospital as their singer nursed his injuries. I was terrified to see what state he was in.

Arch was packed too. He wasn't upset about having to spend a week with Heather and Aiden, but just angry that he couldn't come along to check on Ronnie. I knew that he would grouchy until I returned home and possibly even after that.

"Are you ready to go?" I asked as I turned into his room and leaned against the little dresser next to the door. He was standing at his bed, in front of his bag and stuffing things inside.

He turned around when he heard me. "I guess." He shrugged, offering me to check his stuff as I walked over.

I had laid out his things for him but told him that he could adjust and add anything else that he wanted to bring along with him. He had two versions of his school uniform just incase Heather needed to drop him off, and a week's worth of regular outfits including pajamas. On top of that, he'd stuffed my iPod inside, along with the charger, and the picture of him, me, and Ronnie. As I was standing there, he stuffed one of his hoodies on top of his hygiene stuff.

"Ready," he said simply as he zipped up the little duffle bag.

I dropped down onto his bed and pushed his bag away, grabbing his arm so that he couldn't turn from me. "Arch, look at me," I said, trying to turn him to face me as he tried not to. "Arch, come on."

He sighed as though he was annoyed and begrudgingly turned and crossed his arms over his little chest. His eyes met mine with dull interest and he waited.

I ran my hands up his arm, feeling terrible about leaving him. "I'm sorry, you know," I said to him, "I wish you could come with me, but there's going to be so much happening with Ronnie and I don't want you to have to see all of that."

"I can handle it," he said, trying to stand up straight and sound older, composed, "I don't want you to go without me."

"It's only for a few days," I answered him, unsure of what else to say seeing as I was leaving without him in just a couple hours, "I'll be back before you know it. Plus, I think Heather's really excited to have you over. Aiden, too."

He smiled slightly and nodded, deciding to be a good sport about it all. He grabbed his duffel bag and I took it from him. He followed me as I stopped off in my room to grab mine and my cell phone.

Heather lived in a neighborhood right on the edge of the city. It was called Cross Creek and the houses were an architectural kaleidoscope, the only similar trait being an in-ground pool that most had. The large houses were crammed together, back to back, separated only by fences and narrow, residential roads.

I had texted Heather that we were on our way and as we pulled up along the side of the road, they were sitting in the grass pushing Kyat in the swing that they had lowered to just inches above the ground. Heather grinned at us and hurried over as Aiden plucked Kyat from the tree hung swing and followed her.

I leaned back and unbuckled his car-seat and Arch trudged out of the car, smiling at Heather as she excitedly pulled him in for a hug.

"How have you been?" she asked, wrapping her arms around his little shoulders, "I'm really glad you decided to stay with us."

I grinned at her as I pulled his bag out of the trunk and set in the grass by his feet. "It took some convincing," I answered as I walked around to greet the married couple with hugs and kisses for Kyat.

Heather hugged me tightly and tad too long, reassuring me without speaking. Her blonde hair mixed with my dark locks and she let me go, pushing my hair back comfortingly. "We'll have fun," she said as she grasped his bag, "We were thinking of taking Ky to the zoo tomorrow. They're having a petting area set up."

I smiled at Arch and then turned back to the backseat to dislodge his car-seat for them. Arch slowly lost his stubborn resolve. "Can I pet an elephant?" he questioned, looking at the blonde couple, "They're my favorite."

Aiden chuckled. "I don't know if they'll let giant elephants around kids," he answered, musing Arch's hair, "But I'm sure you'll be able to see some at least."

Heather carried Arch's bag and I lugged his car-seat into the large house. The outside of it was red brick and gorgeous, but when you stepped inside it was even more beautiful. We entered into the foyer and set down Arch's things. Aiden carried Kyat through the entryway into the family room on the left, which had been carpeted and filled with toys.

The stairs were in front of us to the right, running parallel to the hall that spanned the length of the house, and completely to our right was the garage door, and two other doors, a bathroom and the hall closet.

Arch and I followed Heather down the wide hall as she showed him their house. Along the left side of the house were two more entryways, leading into the kitchen and dining room and the left side opened up to their living room, which contained French doors that opened up to their backyard and patio.

"The bedrooms are upstairs," Heather said as Aiden came through the kitchen entryway and met us in the living room across from it. "You'll get the guest room all to yourself."

Arch nodded.

"There's even a TV," Aiden said, grinning since he knew how attached Arch was to the one at our house, "It'll be Kyat's when he gets older, but it's yours for now."

Arch was instantly more pleased with the entire situation. I smiled and dropped down to his level, wrapping him in my arms as I started saying goodbye. "You'll get your own room, a TV, and elephants," I said playfully, "and I'll be stuck in some small hotel room with the band. You'll definitely be having more fun than I will."

He gave me a look that wasn't pleased. "You get to see Ronnie," he countered.

"Yay for me," I replied in the same tone, "Trust me, Arch, I won't be having any fun at all. I'll be dying to come home the minute the plane takes off. You're better off here."

He nodded.

I hugged him and pressed a kiss against the top of his head. As I turned and left the four of them together in the house, I noted the similarities in their appearances and how it seemed that Arch belonged with them.

They were a beautiful, blonde haired, blue eyed family. Arch fit in perfectly as their second child, and if I saw them on the street, there would be no question that he was their child. His mop of loose curls was the perfect mix between Heather's wavy locks and Aiden's tight tendrils. His eyes were almost the same shade of clear blue and his skin tone matched that of Kyat's. They looked like ocean-eyed siblings.

"I love you, baby," I called as I stepped out of the front door, "I'll see you in a week."

"Love you too," he answered, standing in front of the blondes, "See you." He smiled minutely and let Heather push the door closed as I climbed into my car and headed to the airport.

I had paid to store my car there while I was gone so I didn't have to worry about anyone dropping me off and picking me up. I was sure that Heather and Aiden would volunteer, but it was just easier if I was the one dropping Arch off rather than vice versa.

Once inside I searched the overhead screens for my check-in desk. When I finally got to the line, it took a good twenty or so minutes before I was at the front. I pulled my license, online confirmation receipt, my ticket, and Ronnie's credit card number from my carry-on cloth satchel. The woman eyed the piece of paper that the number was written on and then looked up at me.

"My boyfriend bought my ticket," I answered, knowing that she was wondering why I didn't actually have the card, "He gave me the number for check in and emailed me the confirmation."

She nodded and ran the number against the one used to purchase the ticket. She typed a few things in on the machine and waited. I thanked her as she slid my ID back to me. She handed over my boarding card and information and told me my departure times and gate number. I thanked her again, stuffed it all in my bag.

"As for your luggage, has anyone put anything inside of it without your knowledge?" she questioned, reciting it like she asked it a thousand times a day.

"No," I answered.

"Does everything inside your luggage cohere to the rules and regulations that you agreed to when you purchased your ticket?"

"Yes."

She asked me a few more questions and gave me the airline's disclaimer about it being lost or stolen, and the allowed me to fork it over. I hoped that it would make it to Denver with me.

I thanked her one last time and then headed over to security by following the signs. I hadn't flown by myself before. Every time it had been with my father when I was younger, and standing alone in LAX made it seem even more grandiose.

The airport was like nothing else. It was a huge architectural beauty that was stuffed with people heading in every direction. The ceiling was made up of windows and over-head you could see lights and hear planes. There were escalators in almost every direction and shops and restaurants on every landing.

Since it was just me with no luggage and no Arch, it was easy to maneuver through the large groups who were traveling together and the singles like me who were just anxious to get where they were going. When I got to the "departures" gate, I showed them by boarding card, emptied my pockets - my phone and keys - into one of the containers, and dropped my bag and shoes into two more to be scanned.

I had dressed in just a pair of sweats and a hoodie for this very reason. It made security so much simpler when I didn't have ear rings, belts, or jewelry to take off. The woman working asked me to step through one of their new full-body scanners.

I stood still as the women checked the image of me for anything illegal shoved in various, uncomfortable places. After a couple minutes, they thanked me and set me through to gather my things from the end of the conveyer belt.

I slipped back into my shoes and shoved my phone and keys into my bag. I checked the time on one of the screens overhead, noting that I had about 35 minutes before the plane would start boarding. I headed over to the strategically placed Starbucks.

My nerves were on fire and it wasn't necessarily due to the flight. I was more nervous about what would happen when I came out on the other side and what I would have to tell Ronnie and the look on his face when I would repeat everything in person.

The idea of seeing him made me feel sick. My stomach was clenching and unclenching as I paid for my coffee and took to one of the seats. As I sipped on it, I was disgusted by how weak it tasted, almost as if they had mixed it with water.

I took another sip and then tossed it, pushing my hair back so I could tie it up and keep it out of my face. I wasn't hungry, cold, or tired, but I was bogged down by the stress and bounced my foot against the floor as I waited to leave. I had been to Denver once before, but had spent that trip sleeping in the back of a tour bus, curled into Ronnie's chest.