When Friends Fall in Love

~Marissa's P.O.V.~

Brian and I stopped by the dorm room that Krista and I shared so I could drop off my books and change clothes. I invited Brian inside to meet Krista. However, she wasn't there. She'd left a note saying she'd been called in to work. She worked at TGIFriday's, and the note suggested I bring Avenged Sevenfold to the restaurant at closing for some free food.

I put on a low-cut spaghetti-strapped top, skintight leather hip-huggers, and chunky black boots. My navel piercing was visible. I re-applied my lip gloss and eyeliner, then walked out to where Brian was waiting in the hallway. He gave me a look that I couldn't misinterpret.

I played stupid anyway. "What?"

"I appreciate the effort you've made for me," he said sarcastically.

I placed my hands on my hips. "What's wrong with this outfit?"

"You said you would behave," he said.

"I said I would be good," I pointed out. "What does that have to do with my clothes?"

"You're going to provoke the guys," he said. "That's not being good."

"That's their problem," I returned.

He exhaled loudly. "Marissa, you can't test them like this."

"What make you so sure they'll find me attractive?" I demanded.

"I know them," he said. "Besides, you are and you make that outfit look good." He seemed embarrassed to say the last part.

My cheeks warmed. "Thanks. But I'm not changing."

"Fine," he relented. "Just don't--"

"I'll behave," I cut in, knowing that's what he wanted to hear. We started down the hallway. "Did we used to argue this much?" I wondered aloud.

His expression grew thoughtful. "Yep," he said. "Because you could never just accept that I'm always right." He shook his head. "You're so damn stubborn."

I swatted at him. "Me? You're the one who kept insisting our old house was gray."

"That house was gray," he said.

"It was lavender," I disputed. "You're fuckin' color-blind."

"Whatever," he said.

We reached his Tiburon and climbed inside. "I burned a CD yesterday when I found out we were coming to see you." He slid a CD into the car's CD player. The Ying Yang Twins' "What's Happenin'?" met my ears. I laughed. The Ying Yang Twins were one of the few rap groups I could stand. A little over a year before, I had gone through a phase of listening to "What's Happenin'?" constantly. Brian had endured it. He'd even bought me the Ying Yang Twins CD for Christmas that year.

I looked over at him, realizing just how much I had really missed him. He glanced away from the road and gave me a crooked smile. There was a barely perceptible flutter in my stomach. I dismissed it as the beginnings of hunger and smiled back.

**********

Singing along with Atreyu's "Lip Gloss and Black," I checked my makeup while Brian parked. We were at Pocket Change, an arcade not too far from campus.

Brian killed the engine of his Tiburon. "Ready?"

"Not really," I said truthfully. "I'm so nervous that I feel sick."

"Don't be," he said. "The guys are really nice and I know they'll like you."

"It's just..." I paused and took a deep breath. "It's Avenged Sevenfold."

"Uh, hi," he said. "Lead guitarist here. I don't make you nervous. Why should they?"

"But I know you," I said, messing with my bellybutton ring. "You're just...you. Brian. My Terror Twin."

"And they're just normal guys like me," he said. "So just act like you always do and you'll be fine."

I nodded. We got out of the car. He took my hand and led me inside.

"Syn!" a voice rang out the instant we stepped through the door. "I'm glad you're here. Tell Matt--" Rhythm guitarist Zacky Baker, aka Zacky Vengeance, broke off mid-sentence. His green eyes were fixed on me.

"Hey, Synner!" vocalist Matt Sanders, aka M. Shadows, greeted. "Introduce us to your friend."

"This is Marissa, the original second half of the Terror Twins," Brian informed them.

"I object," drummer Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan said loudly.

Brian, Matt, and I looked at him.

"She's too good-lookin' to be your twin, man," Jimmy remarked to Brian.

"We're fraternal twins, jackass," Brian retorted.

"Triplets now," Matt said with a glance at Zacky.

"Hell yeah!" Brian agreed, slapping Zacky on the shoulder. Brian looked around. "We're missing one. Where the hell is Johnny?"

Matt shrugged. "He was killing zombies the last time I saw him." Matt focused his attention on me. "So, tell us a little about yourself."

"Umm, what do you want to know?" I said.

"You're from the South, aren't you?" Jimmy piped up.

I nodded. "Yeah. Alabama."

"I knew I recognized that accent," he said. "I love Southern accents. Real ones. Not the ones on TV."

"How old are you?" Matt asked.

"I just turned twenty-one," I answered.

"You drink?" he questioned.

I lifted a shoulder. "A little."

Brian snorted. "A little? On what planet is that considered 'a little'?"

"More than a little," I admitted, shooting Brian a dirty look.

"Ever been to Spank Daddy's?" Matt queried.

I shook my head. "I've only been to one club, and it was for a concert. I was nineteen, so no drinking was involved."

"You haven't lived," Jimmy claimed, feigning horror at the thought of going to a club and not drinking.

"Well, that's about to change," Matt stated. "Tonight, we're taking you to Spank Daddy's to show you how it's done."

Bassist Johnny Seward, aka Johnny Christ, came up. He carried a big, stuffed Tweety Bird. "It's for Lacey," he said, referring to his girlfriend. He spotted Brian and me. "Hey, Syn. And you must be Marissa." He offered his hand and I shook it.

"Wow, Johnny, when did you get manners?" Brian joked.

"He's sober," Jimmy said. "Give him a few beers and he'll be the Johnny we know and love."

Brian and Matt chuckled. Johnny flipped Jimmy off. Matt suddenly seized Zacky's wrist and checked the watch he wore. "I hate to do this," he said. "But I've gotta go. I'm spending the day with Helena. It was nice meeting you, Marissa. I'll see you tonight."

"Bye," I said softly.

"Yeah. I'm out, too," Johnny said. "Lacey and I are eating lunch with my parents." He waved and followed Matt out of the arcade.

"Food sounds good." Brian turned to me. "Wanna go get some lunch?"

"Sure," I replied.

"You guys wanna come?" Brian invited Jimmy and Zacky.

"Nah," Jimmy refused. "We're gonna see what trouble we can get into now that we're home."

"Have fun," Brian said, and we left.

**********

~Brian's P.O.V.~

I watched Marissa dip a French fry into a puddle of honey mustard and eat it.

"You and your obsession with honey mustard," I commented. "I see some things haven't changed."

"Honey mustard is the greatest thing since ketchup," she declared. "Don't disrespect the honey mustard."

I chuckled, then tried to think of how to ask her what I'd been wanting to ask her since I called her the night before.

"I actually have an ulterior motive for coming back," I said finally.

Marissa gave me a look that was a mixture of curiosity and suspicion. "Oh, really?"

I nodded. "Yep." I took a fry off her plate and popped it into my mouth.

"Hey!" she protested. "You have your own food! Leave mine alone."

I glanced down at my food, then back at hers. "Maybe I should've ordered what you're having." I reached for another fry.

"No!" Marissa scolded, slapping my hand.

I withdrew and pouted playfully. "You're mean."

"I try," she teased, and bit into a fry. "Yum! French fries! And they're all mine!"

"Bitch," I muttered with a grin.

"Ass," she retorted. "Now, stop behaving like a child and let me in on those ulterior motives."

"Okay." I paused. "I want you to come on the road with us," I announced finally.

Marissa stared at me, a fry halfway to her mouth. "What?"

"I want you to come on the road with us," I repeated, snatching the fry from her fingers while she was distracted.

"Brian," she said, not even bothering to complain about me stealing her food. "You know I can't."

"Why not?" I asked.

"I have classes," she answered.

"So?" I ate another of her French fries. "Take online courses. That's what Helena is doing."

"I can't," she said. "I can't afford--"

"I'll pay for them," I offered.

"No," she refused. "Bri, my dad would freak! The money he spent on this semester will have been wasted."

"I can pay him back," I said.

"Even if you paid him back, I don't want to have to do these classes all over," she said. "I'm so close. I only have five weeks left in the semester."

I sighed.

"Bri," she said. "You know I want to come. I just can't. Not right now."

"What if we waited until the end of the semester?" I questioned. "Could you come then?"

"I guess," she replied. "For the summer."

"Then that's what we'll do," I decided, putting ketchup on my cheeseburger.

Marissa studied me worriedly. "Can you guys do that?"

"Sure," I said. "We could all use a little extra time off, and it'll give Matt and Johnny more time with their ladies."

"But you don't have an excuse for not going along with the tour schedule," Marissa pointed out.

"I'll break Zacky's left hand," I joked. "If he can't play, we have to stay home."

She looked at me. "Bri, I'm serious."

"Vix." I looked her straight in the eyes. "Don't worry about it. I'll take care of it."

She nodded. "Bri," she murmured after a pause. "I missed you."

"I called," I defended myself.

"Not enough," she said.

I stood up and tugged her to her feet. "Well I'm here now. And I'd almost bet that by the end of the summer, you'll be tired of me." I hugged her, inhaling the familiar scent of her cucumber melon shampoo and thinking that I would never get tired of being around her.