The Tension's Like a Fire

Jay looked at Jodi, the laughter of his bandmates still present. For a moment, he thought he was daydreaming but no—Jodi really was there, apologizing and handing him what probably was a latte and a record that he had been searching for a long time. For a very long damn time.

She wasn’t looking at him; instead, she had her eyes scrunched up closed and various strands of perfectly done red hair fell in front of her eyes. Finally, letting a gentle smile take over his lips, Jay grabbed the latte and record and leaned in just as Jodi opened her eyes—very softly, he kissed her button nose. She made a little squeaking noise and her cheeks tainted a bright red almost immediately. Jay smiled widely and stepped back, taking a sip of the perfect latte she had brought him.

“Apology accepted,” he chuckled slightly. “Would you like to come in?”

“Oh, uh, I-I,” she stuttered, pulling on the hem of her sweater and exposing a bit of her chest piece with flickering bright colors. “I-I really shouldn’t—I mean, it’s not like I don’t want to, but more like, uh, I have classes and I just came here to apologize a-and, well, I can’t stay long—”

“At what time do your classes end?” he asked calmly.

“F-five twenty,” she replied, flustered. To Jay it was fairly amusing, since she had been seriously snapping at him at Strawberry Fields the previous day. He rather liked this side of her; he could flatter her easily.

“Maybe I could pick you up and we could try again?” it was a nice surprise when she nodded, tucking a stray hair behind her ear and making Jay grin widely. “Great. I’ll pick you up at five twenty in the front parking lot.”

“Okay,” she nodded. Then she looked into his eyes and he saw the regret in hers. “I’m really sorry about it all, Jay, really. I feel so bad about snapping at you…”

“It’s alright,” he shrugged. “Not used to birds doing so, but I guess this is LA.”

She smiled back weakly and before Jay could say anything else, Tom was behind him and his hand was extended towards Jodi.

“Hey! I’m Tom! You must be the lass Jay has been texting nonstop, yeah?”

“I guess,” she giggled, shaking his hand. The members of The Wanted quickly pushed forward behind Jay and tried to introduce themselves to the redhaired, who laughed and shook everyone’s hands, being polite and a bit less shyer. “Nice to meet you all.”

“Same!” Nathan shrieked into Jay’s ear, making him groaned.

“You knobheads, just go back inside!” he made them all scramble, although they didn’t sit far enough from them. Jay turned again to Jodi and gave her a helpless little shrug. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s really fine,” she smiled, fixing the strap of her bookbag in her shoulder. Jay thought she looked stunning, startling him for a moment. “I guess I’ll see you later.”

“Yeah. See you later, Jodi,” he replied before he shut the door and turned to his friends, who all gave him wiggling eyebrows or puckering lips. “Oh, knock it off, you twats.”

“Did you kiss her?” Max asked, watching the curly haired man move to the record player. “I saw you leaning in.”

“Kissed her nose,” Jay mumbled.

“Pansy!” Nathan laughed.

“What record did she give you?” Siva asked curiously, sitting back against the backrest of the couch.

“Coexistence,” Jay grinned. “By the XX. I tried to search for it since it came out but couldn’t find it anywhere. I’m surprised she knew I listened to them, let alone have this one missing.”

“She probably took a wild guess,” Tom let his chin rest on his fist as the music began to play. “It’s so bloody hippie, Jay.”

“It’s called indie,” the blonde laughed, sighing when the familiar song began to play. “God, this really is a great album.”

“You really like this bird, uh?” Max smiled from his place.

“Yeah,” Jay nodded. “I’m glad she doesn’t think I’m a stuck up. I was mad, to be honest, but I guess fame gives you that kind of fame. If I had been a singer from a rock band she would have probably treated me the same. At least I know she’s not a gold digger.”

“Yeah,” Tom sighed. “You inviting her to the Halloween party, right?”

“Sure,” he ran a hand through the mop of curls and puffed his cheeks. “I don’t even know what I’m going to dress as. Or how I’m going to ask her out. This apology and tame phase probably won’t last long. She’s too feisty for that.”

“She seems cool,” Max tweaked his lips. “Though a bit too tattooed.”

“Did you see her neck!?” Nathan jumped in the couch, bringing a hand to his own neck. “She had it covered! She’s got guts, mate!”

“Don’t the tats throw you off?” Siva questioned.

“Not at all,” Jay shrugged, turning to the fifth song of the record, his favourite one. “In fact, I love them. I think it fits her personality and to get such bright colors just makes me think she’s bright herself.”

“You’re such a hippie!” Nathan laughed, throwing a pillow at his head.

“And you’re a twat!” Jay threw it back. “You’re making lunch, Nath!”

“No!” Tom jumped in. “Not him!”

“We’re ordering takeout then,” Max chuckled, grabbing the phone. “Is everyone up for thai?”

Four hands raised in the air and Max immediately dialed, leaving the boys to talk between themselves. All save Jay, who was watching the record spin and sing Angels like own thought imprinted on musical notes.