Rumor Has It

It was late when Johnny stepped into his house. He had just left his girlfriend, Kasey’s, place and was completely exhausted, wanting nothing more than to curl up under his covers and go to sleep. Their relationship was a complete mess, he realized this tonight, but he wasn’t exactly sure what to do about it. He knew that all relationships took work; it was just a matter of deciding whether or not this one was even worth the effort.

In the dark, he navigated to the kitchen. When he got there, he dropped his keys onto the kitchen counter and went straight to the fridge, not bothering to turn on a light. He knew that he wasn’t going to be spending much time downstairs, so he didn’t see the point, especially since he knew the house like the back of his hand.

The light of the refrigerator momentarily illuminated the dark room, quickly disappearing after he grabbed a beer. He popped off the top of his beer and brought the bottle up to his lips. Hopefully, the alcohol would help momentarily erase the thoughts of the nasty fight he and Kasey had just before he came home.

“I can’t believe you, Kasey,” Johnny exclaimed loudly.

“What are you talking about?” Kasey asked, sitting on her bed.

“You, what the hell is wrong with you lately? You never want to go out. You never want to come with me to the parties my friends hold all the time. I don’t understand,” Johnny explained.

“Have you thought about the fact that maybe I’m not wanted there? That maybe your friends hate me?” Kasey asked.

“That’s not true. My friends don’t hate you.”

Kasey scoffed. “Sure. Keep telling yourself that.” Kasey stood up and grabbed her phone off the nightstand.

Johnny groaned when he saw her pick up her phone. “Who the hell are you texting all the time? You’re always on your phone during our discussions and I’m sick of it,” he asked, walking over to her and grabbing her phone from her hand.

“Hey, give that back,” she screeched trying to grab for her phone again.

Johnny held it away from her and then went through it. Everything he saw confirmed his earlier suspicions, but he just didn’t want to believe it. “You’re cheating on me?”

“No, I would never do that,” Kasey pleaded.

“Really? Because these texts say otherwise,” Johnny fumed.

Kasey glared. “Well, if I were cheating on you, maybe it would be because you can’t seem to stop smothering me.”

“Smothering? I’m not smothering you. I’m trying to be your boyfriend and take you out on dates and have fun, but you never want to. All you want to do is go shopping half the time. We never have a day where we sit down and cuddle and watch a movie,” he said. “Maybe Marie was right about you,” he mumbled as an afterthought.

“What did you just say?”

Johnny looked straight at her. “I said, maybe Marie was right about you,” he replied without stuttering.

“Get out. Just get the fuck out!” Kasey screamed.

He gulped down the last of his drink and dropped the empty bottle into his recycling bin as he left the room. His feet dragged as he made his way to the staircase; they lightly hit each step while he made the short trek to his bedroom. He just couldn’t wait until he could climb into bed and sleep-- preferably a dreamless sleep, completely void of drama, because he had enough of that during the day.

He pushed open his bedroom door, again not bothering with running on a light. There was no point by now; his eyes had already adjusted to the darkness. He pulled off his shirt and tossed it into a dark corner of the room. Although he desperately wanted to go straight to bed, he knew that he needed to take a shower, so he walked into the en suite bathroom to take a quick one.

When Johnny was done showering, he returned to his room; his towel wrapped around his waist and his hair damp. He rubbed his palms over his face in an effort to keep himself awake while he searched through his dresser drawer for a pair of boxers, which wasn’t an easy feat in the dark. The smart thing to do would have been to just turn on a lamp, but he didn’t want to bother with lights now because in just a few short minutes he would be turning it off anyway.

He failed to find a pair of boxers, so he settled for what he could find in the disorganized drawer-- a pair of sweatpants. He slammed the drawer shut and trudged back to the bathroom, remembering that he forgot to brush his teeth. It probably wouldn’t do much damage if he skipped one night, but he figured he might as well do it since it was already on his mind. Besides, as a musician, he didn’t want to risk letting his smile deteriorate; it simply wasn’t good for the band to have their bassist flashing decaying teeth at photo shoots. After he was done brushing his teeth, he finally made his way to bed.

“A little birdie told me that you’re thinking of leaving Kasey,” a sultry feminine voice said from the shadows.

Johnny jumped, startled by the voice. “Who’s there?” he asked; his eyes frantically scanning across the dark room.

There was no use in trying to spot the intruder in the dark. He groaned as he caved and finally turned on his bedside lamp. He looked around the room again, and his eyes quickly locked onto a pair of eyes-- a pair of blazing green eyes that he knew very well. He thought he’d never see those eyes again.

“Marie,” he said, shocked.

She smiled at him. “Hi, Johnny.”

“What are you doing here? And how’d you get in here?”

“We’ve known each other forever, Johnny. Don’t you remember that?” she asked, completely ignoring his questions.

He gulped. Of course he remembered. There was no way that he could ever forget his childhood friend. Their friendship had been a huge part of his life. Their friendship had helped shape him into who he is today, and he would never regret a moment of their time together. But he couldn’t will himself to speak. He simply stared at her, speechless.

“What’s the matter, Johnny? Cat got your tongue?”

He swallowed hard and shook his head. “Nothing’s wrong. Now, I want to know how you got in here.
I know that you don’t have a key, so how did you get in? And why are you here?” he asked again.

A smirk pulled at her lips. “It’s all right, Johnny. No need to get your boxers in a twist.”

“Tell me how the fuck you got in here and why you’re here, now, Marie!”

He bit his lip and closed his eyes in frustration. He hated how she could aggravate him so easily by saying so little. He exhaled through his mouth as he gripped onto his hair. He didn’t need this, not now. He was exhausted, too exhausted to deal with any more stress.

Marie noticed his frustration and sighed, standing up from the chair she was sitting in. “Fine, Zacky let me in. I had him drop me off, but you weren’t home. So, because he didn’t know when you’d be back, he let me in. I didn’t think it would be such a big deal,” she said. She knew that she had only addressed one of his questions, but there was time to explain that later.

Johnny stared at her, unsure what to think at the moment. It was hard to think of anything when he was so fatigued, his mind so frazzled. He ran his fingers through his hair and groaned; this was the last thing he needed after the hellish day he’d already had. He needed to figure out what to do about Kasey; that needed to be his priority.

“Look, can we talk in the morning? I’m just exhausted right now,” he finally said, his eyes locking onto hers.

Marie wanted to protest-- she wanted this straightened out now-- but when she saw just how beaten down he was, she had to cave. She let out a heavy sigh and nodded slightly. “I guess so. But first thing in the morning, we’re talking.”

“First thing,” he said with a tired nod of his head. “Thank you. And since it’s so late and you obviously remember your way around here, you can crash in the guestroom downstairs.”

“That works for me. Would you happen to have some sleepwear I could borrow for the night?” She batted her lashes at him, which made a smile quirk up at the corners of his lips.

“Sure, you can borrow some sweats and a shirt.”

“Thanks, Johnny! You’re the best!” she said, squealing as she hugged him tightly.

He chuckled softly, hugging her back until she pulled away. She headed to the dresser, pulled out a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt, and then made her way to the door. As she began to cross the threshold, she paused and turned back to look at him.

“Hey, Johnny.”

“Yeah?”

“You know she’s, like, way too young, right?”

He looked at her, perplexed. “Who is?”

She shook her head and sighed. “You know perfectly well who,” she said before turning around and walking out the door.

Johnny groaned and collapsed onto his mattress. He huffed and pushed the covers aside, getting underneath them. He stared up at the ceiling for a few seconds as his tired brain processed the events of just the last few hours. In such a short amount of time so much has happened-- the rising doubts of his relationship with Kasey and the reappearance of Marie in his life. He didn’t expect Marie to come back, especially now, when his relationship with Kasey was on such thin ice. The timing was so crazy that part of him wondered if this was all just a crazy dream that his mind cooked up, but he knew that it wasn’t.

As tired as Johnny was, sleep wasn’t coming easy. And he knew that it wasn’t going to be coming anytime soon.



Marie set aside the clothes she had been wearing and adjusted the drawstring of the sweats she borrowed from Johnny. She pulled back the covers of the guest bed and crawled in, making herself as comfortable as possible. Turning onto her side, she slid a hand under the pillow, propping her head up just a bit, and her mind began to wander. She thought about how she and Johnny used to be; before everything got so complicated.

“Johnny?” Marie called through the open garage door.

“Short Shit’s not here,” a deeper voice answered her.

Marie frowned; this was where he had said to meet him. “Oh, I must have the wrong place then. Sorry about that,” she replied with a small smile to the four guys sitting around the garage.

“You’re looking for Johnny Seward right?” the tallest of the four asked.

“Yeah, he asked me to meet him here after school. Said this was where he hangs out all the time now,” she answered.

“He’s just running late. The little shit always is. We can never start practice until really late because of him,” the muscular looking guy told her.

“My name’s Marie Bennett, who are you?” she wondered.

“My name’s Matt Sanders. I’m the lead singer,” the muscular guy with hazel eyes and a cropped hair cut smiled at her. She noticed that he had dimples when he smiled. She also noticed that he had a few tattoos on his arms and legs and she liked that he had a lip piercing too.

“Nice to meet you, but how do you know Johnny?”

“He kept coming here during practices and would make comments about how he was a better bassist. When our other one quit during a small tour we were doing we called Johnny to fill in and he’s been playing ever since,” a much leaner guy answered.

Marie turned towards him. His hair was a bit longer than Matt’s, but he also had bangs. It was a black color. The sun glinted off what she assumed was a nose stud. He also had some tattoos showing on his arms; his eyes were a chocolate brown color. She looked at the other two that were in the garage. Her eyes landed on the tallest one. His hair was standing straight up and it was also black, but what she noticed were his striking blue eyes. The contrast they had against his black hair was complimenting. He grinned at her and she couldn’t help by smile.

“I’m Jimmy Sullivan, but you can call me The Rev if you want,” he exclaimed quite loudly.
Marie giggled. “Nice to meet you.”

Her eyes then landed on the last member. His hair was also black, but his eyes were a deep green color; which were hidden by his hair. He had a septum piercing and he was chubbier than the others; he wriggled his fingers at her and she smiled at him.

“My name’s Zacky Baker. That dumb ass over there is Brian Haner, Jr.,” he said pointing to the guy with brown eyes. She nodded in understanding and then let out a sigh.

“So, you don’t have any idea when Johnny will--”

“Marie, great, you’re here!” Johnny’s voice interrupted her.

She turned towards the garage opening and grinned. She jumped up and then ran towards him. Johnny had just set his bass down and managed to catch her in his arms. He spun her around for a bit before setting her down again.

“I’m so glad you could make it. Sorry, I’m late. Did you meet everyone?”

“I did. They are an interesting bunch.”

“Yeah, but they’re awesome. Sit down, sit down. I want you to hear us play,” he urged.

“Alright, alright. I’m sitting,” she laughed.

Releasing a shaky breath, a couple of tears escaped from her eyes. Marie sniffled and wiped her nose with the back of her hand as she stared at the wall. Coming back had been a mistake. She had hoped that seeing Johnny again would help her cope, but she was wrong. If anything, all of this just brought on a flood of emotions that she had been suppressing since she had left-- feelings that she wasn’t ready to deal with. Honestly, she didn’t know if she’d ever be ready to deal with them.
She wiped away the tears from her cheeks and sniffled again as she buried herself further beneath the covers. A heavy sigh passed from her lips and she closed her eyes. And a couple of stray tears rolled down onto her pillow.

When Marie opened her eyes again, it was morning and she smelled French toast cooking. A smile played at her lips, remembering how French toast was one of the few things that Johnny could cook without burning. She sat up and rubbed at her eyes a bit; they were feeling dry and somewhat irritated because she had forgotten to take out her contacts before going to bed. With a yawn, she stretched out her arms and shook off the remaining bit of drowsiness from her system. Then she got out of bed and picked up her clothes before heading to the bathroom to take a quick shower.
Once she had freshened up and dressed, Marie made her way to the kitchen. She saw Johnny standing at the stove, busy fixing their breakfast.

“Something smells good. I take it that someone’s working on their Iron Chef skills,” she said with a chuckle. She took a seat at the kitchen table, which was already set.

“You know it,” he said, turning his head and flashing a bright grin. “I thought I’d make some French toast for us.”

“As if there was anything else you could make. You know, for an Iron Chef, your cooking isn’t all that great,” she said teasingly.

He shot a playful glare her way and resumed cooking. “My cooking is amazing, and you know it.”

“Whatever helps you sleep at night, Johnny boy.”

He bit his lip at the comment. Sleep had been a struggle and he had spent most of the night tossing and turning. When he finally managed to fall asleep, it was four in the morning, and it was by no means restful. He ended up waking up just three short hours later and he decided to cook breakfast for Marie because he was sure she would be up soon.

He finished up cooking the toast and turned off the stove. He picked up the plate of French toast and grabbed a plate of extra crispy bacon as he passed the counter. Setting both plates onto the table, he smiled at Marie.

“Breakfast is served.”

Marie returned the smile as she placed a few strips of bacon and two pieces of French toast onto her plate. Johnny started to fill up his plate, but he suddenly stopped and turned away from the table. Puzzled, she watched him as he walked back into the kitchen. He walked up to the fridge and opened it up.

“Do you want milk or orange juice?”

“Uh,” she bit her lip, “what kind of orange juice do you have?”

“An Iron Chef only has the best,” he said in reply, retrieving a bottle of Simply Orange pulp free juice.

“Well, then the choice is obvious,” she said, pointing to the juice.

He grinned, poured two healthy glasses of juice, and brought them to the table after returning the orange juice to the fridge. Marie smiled and thanked him as he placed the glass down in front of her; he simply nodded in response as he sat down. A silence fell between them as they started to eat. Johnny glanced up to look at her, and guilt knotted in the pit of his stomach as he thought about how he had treated her last night. Yes, he had had the common courtesy to let her stay the night and even borrow clothes to sleep in, but he had also treated her as if she were an unwanted guest. And while she may have certainly been an unexpected guest, she was anything but unwanted.

Marie felt his eyes on her and looked up. Her eyes instantly met his, and she furrowed her brow, wondering what was going on through his head. “Are you okay?”

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry for what?”

“Last night. I shouldn’t have treated you the way that I did; I shouldn’t have taken out my anger on you. I was just a little agitated by some things that are going on-- things that have nothing to do with you-- and it was wrong of me to lash out at you like I did.”

She bit her lip as his words sunk in. “It’s okay, Johnny. You don’t need to be sorry for anything. Honestly, I sort of expected you to just throw me out.”

His brows raised in surprise. “Why would you even think that?”

She gulped as she carefully tried to choose her words. In her head, it was so much easier to speak her mind, but when it came to actually telling him, fear nearly paralyzed her because she knew that it would only bring up a huge unresolved issue between them. The last thing she wanted to do was ruin breakfast by mentioning the sour note that they had left off on.

Marie was talking with Zacky when she noticed Kasey take Johnny aside. They had all retreated to the Sullivan household for the luncheon after the burial service. Marie had hoped to talk with Jonny, or rather have him comfort her because she felt lost. Jimmy had been her second best friend, next to Johnny, and he had understood her and had been there when she needed a shoulder to cry on when Johnny wasn’t available. She had always turned to Jimmy when Johnny flaked on plans. She felt like she was losing her best friend and she didn’t want that, not now-- not after she had already lost Jimmy.

“Marie?” a voice asked from behind her.

Marie turned around to see Johnny standing behind her. She gave a weak smile, knowing that her emotions were shot already.

“Yeah?” she asked.

“Um, can we talk in private?” he wondered.

“Sure,” she replied. She told Zacky that she’d talk with him again later and then followed Johnny to the empty guest bedroom. Johnny sat down on the bed and placed his head in his hands as he let out a deep sigh. Marie furrowed her eyebrows at him.

“Johnny, are you okay?” she asked, before kicking herself at the question. She should know that he wasn’t okay. They both lost one of their best friends.

Johnny looked up at her. “No, I’m not okay. I just lost one of my best friends,” he answered.

“Okay, sorry, stupid question, but why did you want to talk in private?”

Johnny sighed again. “Kasey thinks that I always pick you over her and she wants me to choose between the two of you,” he told her.

“What do you mean she wants you to choose?”

“She said that I either stay with her or stay with you. She doesn’t want me hanging out with you anymore.”

Marie’s eyes widened. Surely Johnny wouldn’t choose Kasey over her. They have been best friends since they were little.

“What did you tell her?” Marie asked.

Johnny swallowed. He opened his mouth to answer her, but Marie saw the answer in his eyes.

“You know what, don’t bother. I’ll just disappear and you won’t see me again,” she said.
Before Johnny could stop her, Marie turned on her heel and walked out of the room, making sure to slam the door in the process.

Coming out of her thoughts, she blinked to ward off any tears that had started to pool in her eyes, and she looked up at Johnny. Her green gaze met his hazel eyes and she sighed heavily. There was no escaping the issue. It was going to come up eventually, they might as well just get it out of the way-- rip off the bandage.

“Well, because of what happened between us,” she finally said, her voice soft and meek.

Johnny exhaled audibly, and she could tell that he was thinking of the last time they saw each other. He shook his head, as if he was simply dismissing the subject altogether. Marie licked her lips and nodded softly in understanding as she picked up her fork. They started eating again, and Marie silently kicked herself for bringing up the topic. What had she expected?

Looking away from her plate, she glanced around the room and caught a glimpse of Johnny and his band mates. Judging by Jimmy’s facial hair in the picture, Marie felt it was safe to assume that the photo had been taken just weeks before his passing. She chewed on the inside of her lip as she looked at each of the men in the picture, at how happy they all were, how little did they know that soon one of their best friends would be leaving them forever. Her eyes fell on Brian, and she felt a pang in her heart; out of everyone in the band, Jimmy and Brian were the closest.

“So, how’s Brian been doing?” Marie asked. “I haven’t had a chance to talk to him lately… I know that he was a wreck when Jimmy--”

“Brian’s holding up,” Johnny said before she could finish her sentence. “He’s doing a lot better than he was.”

“That’s good…” Marie noticed Johnny grasp onto something around his neck, and she noticed it-- the necklace.

After Jimmy’s passing, each of the guys, including some friends and family members, got necklaces made that had a piece of Jimmy’s drum kit. It was sort of their way of having a piece of him with them wherever they went. She hadn’t noticed he even had it on until now.

“And what about you?” she said softly. “How are you holding up?”

A humorless chuckle passed his lips and he shook his head. “Every day is a struggle; it is for all of us.” He sighed shakily. “I keep thinking… There’s still a part of me that expects him to just barge in one morning and be the crazy fucker he’d always been. But it never happens…” The tears threatened to trickle out of his eyes, but he fought them back. He rubbed his face and tried to hold onto whatever composure he had left. “It never fucking happens.”

Marie felt another pang in her heart at the sight of Johnny’s emotional distress. Getting up from her chair, she made her way to Johnny, moved his chair slightly, and settled herself onto his lap. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

Johnny immediately hugged her back. They didn’t need to say a word to each other; Johnny knew just from this one action that she missed Jimmy, too. And that alone was more comforting than anything she could say because it meant that he wasn’t the only one dealing with this; it wasn’t just him and the guys who still had their struggles. It may have seemed horrible to take comfort in his friend’s mutual pain, but it was strangely reassuring nonetheless.

As Johnny buried his face into her hair, he inhaled deeply. And in that moment, he realized just how badly he had missed Marie. She had been his best friend; the one he confided in. What had he been thinking when he let her walk out of his life? Why had he picked being with Kasey over a lifelong friendship? When he thought about it, it didn’t make sense. He loved Kasey, but did she really return his affection? Thinking back on it, Kasey would never let him hold her like this. And she never wanted to have a nice night at home with him. She always wanted to be out and about; always wanted to be seen with him, but he never felt like she actually wanted to be with him.

Marie snuggled in closer to Johnny and she sighed contentedly. She knew she had missed Johnny dearly, but she hadn’t realized just how much she ached for the comfort of being in his arms. She had just missed him so much. But most of all, she missed their friendship. She missed hanging out at his place and having movie marathons until they’d fall asleep. She even missed stopping by the studio whenever his band would work on new material; there was something about watching him in his element-- playing music-- that made her smile. Perhaps it was being able to see the passion he had, or maybe it was just seeing how happy he was doing what he loved most. And as she thought of the old days, her eyes began to well up.

Marie took a deep breath and slowly pulled away from Johnny. She wiped her eyes and looked down at him, hoping that he didn’t notice her tears. But he had. A small smile pulled at his lips and he brought his hand up to her face, gently wiping away a tear from her cheek. He ran his fingers through her hair, leaned up, and placed a soft kiss on her cheek before pulling her in for another hug.
Tears threatened to fill her eyes again as she rested her head on his shoulder. She loved him, she actually cared about him, but who did he pick? He picked a girl who was clearly only in a relationship with him because he was in a hot band on the rise.

“She’s a phony. You do realize that, right?” she said softly.

Johnny sighed and closed his eyes. He knew what people were saying about Kasey; he knew all of the rumors that swirled around her. But he was so blinded by love that he didn’t want to believe them, even when the proof was lying right in front of him like those texts he saw last night.

“She doesn’t care about you like I do. She hardly even knows you… You hardly know her… Is that the kind of relationship you want? Is that the kind of person you want to be with-- a stranger?” She pulled back and her gaze locked onto his. “How well do you really know your girlfriend, Johnny?”

He sighed and shook his head. “You don’t need to tell me; I’ve heard the rumors.”

“Then how can you let her do this to you? I just-- I don’t like seeing you like this, Johnny. It kills me to see you be hurt so much by someone who’s supposed to love you!” she said, tears streaming down her face. It was uncharacteristic of her to cry so much, but she couldn’t help it; there was only so much that she could take before breaking.

Johnny didn’t say a word. Instead, he just stared at the kitchen cabinets as Marie’s words slowly started to sink in. She was right; how could he let Kasey do this to him? It didn’t make any sense. So why had he let this go on for so long? He finally tore his eyes away from the cabinets to look back up at Marie, and he saw the tears staining her cheeks. Immediately, he wiped them away.

“I guess I’ll just leave you to your thoughts…” she said, climbing off of his lap. “And I’m sorry for what I said… I didn’t mean it… It was good seeing you, Johnny.”

And with that, she turned away towards the guestroom. Out of courtesy, she made the bed and
folded the clothes she had borrowed. She placed them on top of the pillows, she was sure that Johnny would find them eventually. After a quick look around the room, she made her way to the hallway. She glanced back to look at Johnny, who hadn’t moved, one last time before walking to the front door. And as she closed the door, she felt that she had just severed the remains of their bond.



Marie had been at Zacky’s house for a good ten minutes, but she hadn’t willed herself to go inside the house. Instead, she had been sitting in her car the whole time, sobbing. She was frustrated, she was hurt, and she was brokenhearted. She had put everything on the line, and even though she had tried to take it back by telling him she didn’t mean it, she knew that it was nothing more than a lie. She had meant it; every single word. And what did he give her in return? Nothing but a blank gaze and silence; it felt as if he had plunged a knife deep into her heart and gave it a good twist.

She did what she could to collect herself and exhaled slowly through her mouth before she got out of the car. She sniffled a little before reaching Zacky’s front door, and she knocked softly. She didn’t want to be a complete mess in front of him, so she held back the tears that were fighting to make their way to the surface. All she wanted was for someone to comfort her, someone to make her pain go away. As she raised her fist to knock again, Zacky opened the door.

Zacky could tell just by looking at her what had happened; things at Johnny’s didn’t go as she had hoped. He pulled her in for a hug, and she gladly accepted it. And as her arms wrapped around Zacky’s waist, she broke down into tears again. He gently rubbed her back before picking her up and carrying her into the living room. She buried her face into the crook of his neck as he sat down on the couch and started to rock her.

After a few minutes, she heard a familiar voice say her name. She hiccupped as she calmed herself down and pulled her face away from Zacky to see who it was. She smiled weakly when her eyes locked onto Matt’s hazel gaze. She noticed that Brian was with him; both of them looked somber. Matt cleared his throat and headed to the couch, sitting beside Zacky.

It was times like these when Marie was truly grateful to have all of these boys in her life-- to have someone besides Johnny to turn to for comfort. At first, she had been closer to Jimmy, so he had been her go-to person when she and Johnny started to grow distant, but when he passed away, she had learned to open up to Matt, Zacky, and Brian. Each boy had taken on different roles.

Whenever she needed instant cheering up, she would go to Brian because he could always make her smile. He had a sense of humor similar to Jimmy’s but with his own dry wit thrown in, and it usually made her laugh without fail. Add that with a quirky attitude that reminded her of her own brother, and Brian easily made a place in her heart. Matt was the protector of the bunch. But it wasn’t just his muscular build that placed him into that role. It was actually the fact that he reminded her so much of her dad, who always stuck up for the ones he loved, and it warmed her heart to see that similarity. And Zacky was the comforter. When she needed someone to hold her and assure her that Johnny would one day come to his senses, Zacky was the one to go to. He just had a way with words that soothed.

“What’s wrong, Marie?” Matt said.

She rested her head on Zacky’s shoulder as she looked at Matt. As much as she didn’t want to cry, the tears fell regardless. “I saw Johnny.”

That was all she needed to say. Matt sighed and opened his arms to her, and she crawled off of Zacky’s lap and onto Matt’s. He hugged her tightly, his protective arms shielding her from the world.

“I feel so stupid…” she said quietly. She had promised herself that she wouldn’t let Johnny get to her like this. They just weren’t meant to be, and she had to accept that. But while her brain knew that she could never have him, her heart didn’t understand why.

“You’re not stupid,” Brian said.

Marie looked up at him; he was still standing so she had to crane her neck a bit. “How can I not be? I put my heart on the line, and he didn’t even fucking care! He just stared off into space…”

“That doesn’t make you stupid. If anything, he’s the dumbass who just can’t see what’s in front of him,” Brian said matter-of-factly as he sat down in a chair across from her.

Marie sighed, frustrated. “So what is it that he sees in her? What makes her so much better than me?”

“Nothing,” Zacky answered. “I don’t understand what he sees in her. The bitch is straight-up rude.”
The snide comment made her smile.

“Oh, is that a smile I see?” Brian said with a raised eyebrow, which made Marie giggle. “And she giggles too! Can I get a fuck yes? I mean, this is progress we’re seeing, folks!”

She giggled again, smiling as she looked around at the guys. She loved them all dearly, and they were the best friends a girl could have. No matter what, they were always there for her when she needed them. If only she could say the same for Johnny…

A sudden knock came at the door, and they all turned their heads. Marie drew her eyes back to Zacky, who just shrugged his shoulders as he got up to answer the door.

“What do you want, Short Shit?” Zacky asked, his voice carrying into the living room.

Marie’s heart raced. Short Shit was a nickname that the guys had given him because he’s the smallest one in the group. But what was he doing here?

“Marie said she was staying here, is she here now?” Johnny asked.

At the sound of his voice, Marie buried her head into Matt’s neck. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to see Johnny after everything that had happened this morning. All she wanted to do was to get Johnny to see just how much she cared about him, and maybe realize how toxic Kasey was. But things didn’t go as she had hoped, and instead she had lost a lifelong friendship and was left with a broken heart.
She wasn’t sure if her heart could handle seeing him now.

“And why do you want to know, Johnny?”

“Please, Zack, I need to see her.”

Marie bit her lip. The urgency in Johnny’s voice made her heart ache. Even though he had hurt her, she just couldn’t bear to do the same to him. She gave Matt a small, assuring hug and stood up. As she glanced down at him, she saw a comforting dimpled smile on his face, giving her the little push that she needed. She looked back at Brian to see him nodding softly, encouraging her to go on.

Taking a deep breath, Marie made her way to the front door. And as she stepped behind Zacky, she caught a quick glimpse of Johnny. She wondered if he noticed her or not.

“It’s okay, Zacky,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Zacky turned to look at her. His green eyes shone with concern, asking her if she was sure about this. She simply nodded in response, and he smiled, trusting her decision. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, and Marie watched him as he walked away to join Matt and Brian in the living room. Once he had disappeared from sight, she turned her attention to Johnny.

“What do you want?” she asked.

“I need to talk to you.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Okay, so talk.”

He sighed heavily and his eyes met hers. “I’m sorry, Marie. I should have said something earlier, but I was just… I was confused. But when you left, something suddenly clicked. I realized that I didn’t want to lose you, ever. So I’m here to tell you that I’m a free man now. I just came back from Kasey’s; I ended it. All of the rumors were true, and you were right, I couldn’t let her treat me like that.”

It’s over?” she asked, making sure that her ears weren’t playing tricks on her.

“It’s over,” he said, smiling down at her.

She couldn’t believe what she was hearing; Kasey was finally out of the picture. Johnny could finally be happy again, maybe even find someone who was actually good for him. And with Kasey out of the way, there were no more obstacles in the way of Marie and Johnny’s friendship. Overjoyed at the thought of having her best friend back, she lunged at Johnny and hugged him tightly.

“Whoa, there,” Johnny said with a chuckle as he returned the gesture.

“Sorry,” she said, pulling away from him slightly, “I’m just so happy to hear the news.”

“I can see that. I don’t blame you; I’m pretty happy about it, too.”

Her eyes met his for a moment, and she bit the inside of her bottom lip. “So, does that mean we can go back to being friends again?”

He smiled at her and ran his fingers through her hair. “I’d like that very much. Are you sure you can forgive me for being such a douchebag, though?”

“I’m sure I can find it in my heart to forgive you, eventually,” she answered, a tiny smirk playing on her lips.

His brows arched up in surprise. “Eventually?”

“Well, you’re going to have to work yourself back up into my good graces, Johnny boy.”

“And how would I start that?”

She tilted her head to the side and rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “How about we start with you coming inside and joining me and the guys for a movie marathon?”

He chuckled and smiled at her. “I can definitely do that.”

Marie grinned widely and led him into the living room. Matt, Brian, and Zacky could see Marie’s improved mood and smiled at their friends as they walked into the room. Marie and Johnny joined
Matt on the couch.

“How’s it going, Short Shit?” Matt asked.

“Pretty good now,” Johnny said as he draped his arm around Marie’s shoulders. “Marie said that you guys were planning on watching some movies and invited me to join.”

“We’re doing what now?” Zacky said, leaning forward in the recliner he was sitting in.

“We’re watching movies,” Marie said matter-of-factly.

“When did we decide on that?” Brian said.

“I decided, just a little while ago,” she answered.

Zacky raised an eyebrow, “Oh really? And what exactly do you plan on us watching?” he wondered.

Marie smiled mischievously. “Romantic Comedies,” she replied simply.

All four guys groaned in unison as they sat back in their chairs. Marie burst out laughing at their response to her answer.

“You guys fall for it every time. You honestly think I’d make you watch a marathon of Romantic Comedies?”

“Yes, yes I do,” Brian stated.

“Dumbass. Romantic Comedies are fun to watch, but I’d much rather have a Horror movie marathon,” she said.

“Yes!” Zacky exclaimed, jumping up from his chair.

Marie giggled and turned towards Johnny. “Go make tons of popcorn and make sure to grab some beer for us all,” she instructed.

Johnny stood up right away and walked towards the kitchen. If it meant mending their friendship a lot faster if he did everything she said, then he would do it. Marie smiled after him before she turned towards Matt.

“Matt?”

Matt looked at her and smiled widely. “Fine, I’ll go help him,” he groaned.

“Yay! You’re the best Mattie!” she said with excitement.

Once everyone was settled back into their chairs with popcorn and beer available to them Marie started the movie marathon with Friday the Thirteenth. As Marie watched the film, she took her eyes away from the screen for a few seconds to look around at all of her friends. They looked content as they watched the film. Marie’s eyes landed on Johnny and she stared at him for a few minutes before she rested her head on his shoulder. Johnny shifted his body until he was able to drape his arm around her and she let out a contented sigh. Things were starting to look up again and she hoped they continued to look up now that she had her best friend back.