'Cause Baby I'm a Dreamer for Sure

“So your parents have decided everything you've done and didn't let you do anything on your own?" Derek asked from the seat behind me. The boys allowed me to sit in the front, while Brooks drove, and the other four piled in the back. I had also decided to tell them about my story.

"Pretty much. They wanted me to become an art major, but I love music and would rather have my job to do something with music rather than art. My parents don't though." I said turning in my seat to look back at Derek.

"That really sucks, that they would do that." Derek replied

"What's even worse is that the one time you get to do something you want to, you get a boss that's a complete... I don't even know a good word to describe what he is." Brooks added causing me to smile and laugh a bit. He glanced at me quickly, a smile gracing his features as he did, before putting his eyes back on the road.

"He's horrible to say the least, but enough about me. Who are we meeting tonight?" I said changing the subject as I turned back around in my seat.

"It's our girlfriends; Lauren, Jessica, and Ashley." Derek said casually.

"And my girl will be there later, she had to work late." Alex added.

“Wait, that's only four. What about you Brooks?" I asked turning my attention to him.

"How do you know I'm the one who doesn't have a girl there? Derek didn't say whose girlfriend they were." Brooks stated.

"I told you I was a fan." Was my only reply as I smiled at him."Anyways, I thought you had a girlfriend.” I said a bit awkwardly as I looked out my window.

"I did, but we broke up. I'd rather not talk about it." Brooks said a bit sadly.

"Completely understandable, and I'm sorry it didn't work out." I said glancing at him. He just nodded with a sad smile that quickly faded as an awkward silence filled the van.

"So, do you have anyone special at home, Annie?" Derek asked, trying to get rid of the silence and awkwardness that passed.

"I have an amazing friend named Julie and I have a boyfriend named Ben." I said suddenly thinking about what Jules had said.

"Awesome friends are amazing!" Jake exclaimed sounding a bit like a five year old and causing me to laugh.

"You guys should know, huh? I mean, all of you are awesome people." I looked back at Brooks, and noticed he was smiling again.

"Thanks Annie."Derek said laughing some. He sounded like he was going to say something else, but Brooks cut him off.

"You said you had a boyfriend, but you didn't sound too happy about it."

"I didn't?" I didn't know what to say exactly, so I decided to tell them what was on my mind. "I guess it's because after I quit, I wanted to talk to someone, so I called Ben. He didn't answer and he always does. So I called Julie, my best friend, instead, and when I brought up Ben, she had to go and hung up on me. She sent me a text shortly after saying she couldn't talk about Ben right now and earlier today she told me that we needed to talk about him. Ben's always been there for me, he's so kind and cares about everyone, but now I'm worried that something's going to happen with our relationship." As I spoke my voice began to shake a bit and tears began to drip down my face. I didn't even realize the car was off until someone took my hand in theirs. I looked up only to find that it was Brooks who was holding my hand, and the other guys were staring at me with sad and worried filled eyes. I gave them a small smile and wiped my face with my free hand, trying to let them know I was okay.

"C'mon you guys, your girls are waiting for you. Let's go inside." I said unbuckling my seatbelt, but not letting go of Brooks’ hand. He held my gaze for a minute, while the others climbed out of the van, before gently squeezing my hand and climbing out himself. As we began to make our way around the side of the building, Jake, Alex, Derek, and Jeremy were excitedly talking in front of me, but Brooks was walking a bit slower than us. So I waited a minute and fell in step with him.

We just looked at each other for a moment. It wasn't weird or awkward, but like we understood each other and the pain of relationships. I slowly reached out and took his hand in mine, hoping he wouldn't pull away from me. Holding his hand was comforting to me, I felt like it was easier to deal with my confusing relationship, like I wasn't so alone. He didn't pull away; instead he squeezed my hand gently, like he did in the car, and began to walk closer to me than before, where our arms were constantly touching. No words passed between us but none were needed. We probably looked like a couple then, but I really didn't care. Brooks was the one keeping me from going insane with worry and breaking down in tears. He was the anchor that kept my feet on the ground.