Had Me From Hello

It had been approximately two weeks since the start of the All Time Low (feat. Annie Madison) winter tour and Annie had to admit she was getting used to the idea of being on tour most of the time.

"You have so many fucking books, oh my God," Jack sifted through the long line of novels on the kitchen counter. Picking up a book with a bright blue cover, the guitarist eyed his friend. "Where do you find the time to read all this?"

Annie couldn't help but laugh at how surprised Jack was at her collection of books. "Whenever I have a few minutes to spare, I make a dent in some of them, you know? Besides, msot of them are John Green novels, so it's quite alright," running a hand through her messy bed hair, Annie winked.

"You women and your weird girly things," Jack snapped the book shut, placing it back in its rightful spot. "I'll never understand."

Annie rolled her green eyes at Jack's confusion, flipping through the thousands of TV channels. "I'm so glad I bought this TV. It's the best thing to ever happen to me."

Jack chuckled softly, plopping down on the couch next to the younger girl. "Dammit, we should have went with the guys and got Taco Bell. I'm starving."

"You should have went then," Annie picked up the water bottle that was sitting on the floor in front of her. "Go catch up with them now; they're probably already there."

"Nah, I'm spending the day with my new best friend, remember?" Jack asked, playfully pushing Annie's shoulder. "So, I have a serious question," he stated, his tone suddenly changing.

Startled by the abrupt change in Jack's tone of voice, Annie took a swallow of water and raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"You're into Alex, aren't you?"

Annie's eyes widened suddenly, "Excuse me?" Was it that obvious?

"You're. Into. Alex," Jack repeated, but this time saying it as a fact rather than a question. "C'mon, Annie; everyone can see it. Well, everyone but Alex."

"Jack, I'm not into Alex. We're friends," Annie felt the heat rise to her cheeks; she felt like it was suffocating her.

"Yeah, okay," Jack said, his voice dripping in sarcasm. His eyes fell on the ragged, brown book sitting on the small table beside him. "Oh, what is this? Well, the cover says 'Song Book'. Hm, I wonder if..." his fingers began flipping through page after page, pretending to thoroughly read the words written on them. Finally settling on one that had a phrase that caught his eye, he began reading Annie's loopy penmanship. "'I was at an all time low the night you walked in. You were just close enough to smell the whiskey on my breath.'"

Annie jumped from her spot on the couch, tackling Jack to the floor. "Give me that, Barakat!" she screamed, her small arms reaching desperately for the small book as if it were her lifeline.

"Wait, I'm reading!" Jack lightly shoved the petite girl off of his back. "'I didn't know why you were alone, but you ain't leaving that way. I threw back one more drink before you told me your name*. And I said, 'Hey, hey, why you acting so sorry? Hey, hey, who put that look on your face?'' Wow, call me crazy, Annie," Jack tapped his chin with a long, skinny finger, "but a lot of these select words and phrases seem to point to one particular person that you and I both know."

"Jack-"

He cut her off, continuing to read the song. "'And I don't wanna leave this house* until I get your number. If I'm being honest, I can't wait to get you home,'" Jack suddenly stopped reading, looking up at Annie.

Her face was beet red; the color was even visible through her long hair and the hands covering her eyes.

"'Unlike all the others, I won't jet the morning after. I won't go dropping your heart on the floor. Just give me what I want; don't drop my heart on the floor,'" Jack made an approving noise, approving both the lyrics and that Annie had feelings for Alex. "I like it," he said casually, flipping the page, without uttering even another syllable.

Annie sat still in her place, knowing there was nothing she could do. It wasn't as if she had really any advantage over the older man; he was taller and probably a hell of a lot stronger than she.

"This one is called 'Stay Stay Stay', but you don't really have a lot written, hm," Jack noted,
running his finger across the words written in dark ink. "'It's been occurring to me that I'd like to hang out with you for my whole life' sounds a lot about someone you are very close to, huh?"

Annie stood up and snatched the book quickly from Jack. "Jack, it's none of your business about anything I write about, okay? You don't even have to listen to what I sing. Just stop assuming shit," and without waiting for a reply, Annie swung the bus door open. "I have to write songs, so you should probably get going. Don't want you to assume things, do we?"

Jack raised his hands in front of his chest, as if surrendering to a battle. "Look, Annie, I didn't mean to piss you off or anything. I'm just letting you know that Alex is into you, too. And if you like him as much as I think you do, you might wanna move fast. Alex doesn't really like chasing after girls who don't want to be chased."

Annie felt a pit open in her stomach; why had she reacted so rudely to Jack? He was just reading songs and stating what even she knew was the obvious. Sighing heavily, Annie shut the large door and walked towards Jack. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so mean to you."

Jack shot a small smile at the girl, wrapping her in a tight hug. "It's fine; don't worry about it, kid."
In the back of his mind, though, Jack had a small suspicion that Annie Madison was just as terrified of relationships as Alex Gaskarth was.

And he was correct; Annie hadn't been in a real relationship with anyone since she had broken things off with Sam years ago. Of course, she had a fair share of dates or drunken one night stands, but she was terrified of committing to someone again. Especially someone who had just the same opportunity as Sam did all those years ago - the opportunity to pack up and run as far away as possible.

With Annie's career picking up and All Time Low's constant touring, Annie knew that if they did actually develop a relationship with one another, the opportunities to run away were endless.

Annie was scared that Alex would break her, just as Sam had when he picked a university in Rhode Island over the comforts of University of Baltimore. Annie couldn't blame Sam, because even she would have picked an education over a relationship, no matter who was on the other end of that relationship. And she knew if it came down to it, Alex would pick his career over her.

And what had terrified Annie Madison the most was that she was willing to risk that just to be with Alex, even if it was just for a little while.