Broken Strings and Broken Dreams

I ignored him for a whole week.

It was hard to do since Alex made it a point to be where ever I was. Like when he showed up at the diner that I only waitress at on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Or when he made it a point that he wasn't going to leave the music store I was in until I talked to him.

He never got his wish because I just opted on leaving myself. I was still really angry but it was starting to wear down and I honestly didn't know if I could keep it up.

I mean, I still want to kiss him when I see him. I still get mad when I see another girl wink at him. I still wish I could just hug him and never let go. And I still could, if I wasn't mad at Alex.

But as the week wore on, I could see a visible change in Alex. Like how when I'd see a girl wink at him, he'd ignore it. I mean, Alex is a guy after all and even before this all happened, I could tell he still kind of looked. Or how he stopped trying to pester me. And then how he just stopped everything completely.

"Thanks for driving me to school Madi Poo Bear!" Jack thanked me again for the 3rd time this morning. "I can't believe Alex is actually going to school early for school work. It's never happened before."

I shrugged. "Maybe he's changing." I muttered, turning my turn signal on as I waited for another car to turn into the school parking lot.

"I don't want him to change though. He's my best friend." Jack whined, putting his hands to his face. I rolled my eyes.

"Oh stop it. He's still going to be your best friend but his brother died and that might change things. Just don't worry about it okay?" I tried to reassure him as I pulled into a parking spot and made my way to get out.

The school was already almost full so we quickly made our way through the parking lot and squeezed our way through the front door.

It felt like any other day except Alex wasn't standing with Anabelle, Rian, and Kara when Jack and I walked up to them. "Where the fuck is Alex?" Jack asked.

The three all shrugged. "We thought he was driving you." Rian answered.

"Why the fuck would I call and ask if you had room in the car if I was riding with him?" Jack snarked and Rian rolled his eyes. "And people call me stupid." He mumbled.

"That's because you are Mr. Barakat." A teacher suddenly said walking by and Jack's mouth dropped open. I tried to cover my laugh up with a cough but Jack stomped his foot and walked away anyways.

I decided to say goodbye anyways since the bell would go off at any minute. It was getting closer to Halloween so decorations littered the wall as people from art classes had put all of their 'scary drawings' up just like every year.

As it turns out, Alex wasn't in my second class. So much for coming to school to make up school work. I could feel my stomach churn at the thought of what he might be doing, with who, if there was a who.

Third period passed and when he wasn't in my fourth I figured he just left school completely. Lunch came around and when I got to the table that Anabelle, Rian, and Kara were sitting at already, Jack stormed up.

"Alex isn't here today." I let him know and his eyebrows creased.

"Neither is Lisa Ruocco." He added and my belly flopped. He couldn't be with her. We were still together, right?

I saw Anabelle look at me with that look. That look that said, 'I'm sorry your boyfriend might be with his ex-girlfriend right now'.

"Alex isn't that stupid." Rian said, not sounding completely convinced. "Maybe he's just, uh, maybe he just went home."

Kara smacked him on the arm with a glare that made Rian keep quiet.

"So, uh, we have an assembly after lunch." Anabelle said, trying to change the subject. I nodded, confirming. We were supposed to go to class and then called by hall to the gym. I was quiet the rest of lunch as they told where we'd all meet up even though Kara was the only one who had a different class.

When the bell rang and we made our way to music, I could hear the excited chatter about the assembly. About what it could be about or it specifically being a Halloween assembly.

We were the 4th hall to be called so when we arrived in the gym, more than half the seats were filled and I saw Kara's recently dyed purple hair, thanks to Anabelle, from the door. I turned to tell Rian and Jack but they weren't there and I was suddenly being pulled by Anabelle.

"We got a great seat this time!" Anabelle squealed and I looked at her. I thought only Jack squealed. Brother like sister, I guess.

It took several minutes but the bleachers were now full and I couldn't see those two boys anywhere. A student, the student body president, walked out with his mic as they played music in the background.

We were right smack up front, like, the first row, and I couldn't figure out why. Big paper pumpkins, witches, goblins, monsters, and zombies hung from the ceiling.

From previous assemblies I've been to we weren't normally allowed to sit in the front row and when our cheer team ran off the gym floor, I expected the dance team to run on, but they didn't.

Actually, the music stopped completely, and Mitchell, the student body president walked off towards the side as they slid a make shift curtain across part of the floor.

The students started talking and then some tried to see what was going on. Anabelle sat next to me with a huge grin on her face and when I went to ask her what was wrong with her, I heard a familiar piano tune being played.

My eyes widened when the voice reached my ears. Was this actually happening?

The curtain moved and suddenly I saw the boys and Zack sitting or standing with their instruments, besides Alex, who sat playing the piano from the choir room. I felt my eyes tear up because Alex was looking at me and so was everyone else.

"I didn't know The Used was your favorite band." I heard Anabelle whisper to me and I sniffled.

"It's not. Yellowcard is but they're close second." I told her and I swear her eyes twinkled.

Bringing my attention back to Alex and the now playing boys, all I wanted to do was kiss him. It didn't matter how mad at him I was before because all I saw was him and he was forgiven.

When the song stopped and people started cheering, I couldn't stop my smile. Alex was smiling back at me and stood up, picking up a mic from his mic stand, as he walked completely into the middle.

"Thank you, thank you!" He yelled out making a 'rock on' sign with his free hand. "That was for a special girl, my girlfriend, Madilynn Grey. She's that beautiful brunette in the front row by the girl with purple hair. She loves The Used and for those of you who don't know, that song was called Smother Me." He stated.

"Now, we got cleared to play another song but I want to add another person because this song has something only she can play. So please, welcome my girlfriend to the stage!" He shouted and my jaw dropped.

What?

Anabelle pushed me forward, making me stand up, and Alex brings my violin from behind the piano, holding it out to me. He placed his mic back and I finally got to the middle of the floor and close enough to grab my violin.

"I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry, and I hope this fixed something because I miss you and I can't stand you not talking to me." He apologized in which I smiled.

"You're forgiven." I told him and he grinned, pulling my hand up and kissing it.

"Only One." He bent and whispered to me before Jack started playing and Alex had his guitar over his shoulder, which he pulled from behind the piano also. He stayed by me and when my big part came up, I forgot that we had an audience and it was just us and the boys.

Alex kept looking at me as I played and when we were done, I was breathless, and I realized I was still in the gym. I gripped onto my violin tighter when tears started to leak from my eyes and threw my arms around his neck, pulling myself to him like a magnet. He was warm and sweaty but I didn't care because I was happier than I've been in a long time.

And people were still cheering.