Stories Yet to Unfold.
Growth.
Lucy smiled, ‘hello?’ Jack smiled, ‘you must be the Hustler Club person, Hopeless is paying you’ ‘yeah’ Lucy nodded, ‘I am’ a little confused cos she was certainly not being paid for this, looking at her notebook, ‘old school, not a laptop’ ‘I’ve found in my school paper when doing interviews, it’s less easy to lie on paper than a computer, and so the interviewee trusts you’ Jack smiled, ‘they can see you writing as well, also a laptop screen isn’t great with communication’ Jack grinned, ‘fine’ Lucy nodded, ‘so, ermm, Hopeless isn’t paying me’ Jack looked at her, ‘than who is?’ ‘It’s an internship’ Lucy murmured, ‘they sent the person least fangirl here’ trying to just make something up, really, ‘you’re an unpaid intern, that’s not cool’ calling Alex, ‘I don’t want your money, it’s ok’ ‘so do you have money to take care of yourself’ ‘it’s not a long internship, so it’s ok’ Alex looking at her, ‘hi’ Lucy murmured feeling like she could look at that for a long time, ‘so, they sent you?’ ‘Yeah’ ‘with no money’ ‘I’m fine really’ ‘ok, well, we’ll take care of you’ ‘very kind of you, thanks, I’m just gonna go unpack and stuff’ ‘I’ll show you your room’ ‘thank you’.
Alex looked at her as she made notes, ‘you write then?’ ‘I prefer it, you can read through it, make sure it’s ok to look through, then you can see my notes and then I’ll make a blog post’ ‘are you going to film?’ ‘I did a lot yesterday and I’ll do some more tomorrow, it’s a big thing to have in the room, Zack’s arm nearly broke the thing three times’ Alex laughed, ‘so, I’m doing it for the camera’s health’ laughing, ‘so, what’s your favourite band?’ ‘I love The Maine, I’m seeing them in Pomona next week’ Alex smiled, ‘why do you like him?’ ‘I like how they have a record for every situation’ Alex smiled, ‘you mean, they don’t all sound the same’ ‘I won’t rise to that, but it’s true, some bands can have that habit, problem with some bands is that when something doesn’t work, they will ignore every part of that record and not take the best bits of a success, it’s just not what The Maine do’ Alex looked at her, ‘you think we do that’ ‘honestly, Yes, but you have a fragile ego, Alex I’m not shocked, you hate being reminded of failure unless it’s lyrical, if there’s anything I’ve learnt about you in two days’ ‘geez’ ‘Psychology class of 2019, John Hopkins’ Alex smiled.
'Cos I'm a sad sad post teen..walking like a zombie..' singing along her to music on Spotify on her bed in her room, Jack knocked, 'come in' Lucy called, Jack smiled, 'wondered if you wanted to record us jamming' 'sure' Lucy nodded, 'I'll record it on my phone, cos that thing is a nightmare' Jack laughed as she came down and watched recording parts, 'so, you wanna play a game?' Jack looked at her, 'what?' 'It's a musical one, you pick a theme and you have to make a beat, a melody or a lyric that would work with that theme' Alex smiled, 'are you playing?' 'Sure, I'll try' 'fine, I'm down, might throw up some ideas' 'considering today' laughing a little, 'Whose got an idea?' 'Tim Burton, it's almost Halloween' Jack added, Lucy smiled picking up her notebook and thinknig for a bit, Alex smirked, 'I'll do better' 'we'll see Gaskarth, you over think everything, you're using an eraser already' Jack smiled, 'Lucy you go first' 'ok' picking up Alex's guitar, 'cos two can keep a secret, if one of them is dead' Alex smirked, 'that's good' laughing, and playing all evening.
-x-
'I recognise this' Jack smiled, 'Alex made it playing your game' 'that was a good game' Lucy smiled, 'you're a good writer?' 'I'm a poet to be honest, do spoken word so it's easy to just figure something out with a melody, I can't sing' 'you can' 'thank you, you are far too kind' Jack laughed, 'No, I'm not' Lucy filming some bits for the next update, 'I'll interview some of you guys later' Jack smiled, 'fine with me, how did you come up with that game?' 'Spoken word meetings, improvise' Jack nodded, 'I thought it would be perfect in a band actually' Jack smiled, 'glad you suggested it' 'good, glad you think so' 'get's you creative' 'definitely' Lucy nodded, 'can I buy you dinner later?' 'I don't know' Jack nodded, 'you wanna be professional?' 'It's just that's why they picked me, I'd feel like I lied to them' Lucy murmured, 'that's all' 'I had no idea, romance and love were dictated by rules' 'don't be upset with me, be upset with Hopeless' Lucy sighed getting back to work, 'though I'm studying in Baltimore next year, and you're going to be busy' he grinned, 'good to know' 'I am flattered' 'good' he grinned.
Jack knocked on her door, ‘I know we can’t go out to eat, so I brought the pizza to us?’ Lucy smiled, ‘I don’t particularly wanna give up particularly when you don’t want to either’ ‘two can keep a secret, now, huh?’ Jack grinned, ‘I think so’ laughing, ‘come in’ ‘what do you like in bands?’ ‘If I like them as people, you know, there’s some bands I see and I’m like no, no, no, you shouldn’t be allowed near people like me’ ‘who like?’ ‘Attila come to mind, I worked in Soundstage through my teenage years in Baltimore and oh my god they were assholes to juniors’ Jack smiled, ‘so you live in Baltimore’ ‘I do, Jack’ he grinned, ‘so when we get home’ ‘exactly, play it cool now, with your pizza and when I get back at the end of this, also considering the internet, you like them young’ Lucy murmured, ‘I was warned’ Jack looked shocked, ‘that wasn’t true, we’re friends, my god’ ‘I’m really sorry’ ‘it’s not your fault, oh my god’ Jack murmured, ‘sorry, well, I know now it’s not true, your reaction, it doesn’t matter’ ‘good, yes, you’re right’.
Lucy finished the blog post and then begun editing the video footage, playing bits of their song over the top of the video, amazed no one had come to check on her at all, Alex looked at her, ‘you’re not an intern, I just asked about you’ ‘no, they don’t consider me an intern, you are indeed right, it’s work experience, sorry?’ Jack sticking his head out, Alex looking at her, ‘fair enough, but they said you won a competition’ ‘I do believe I told you that’ Rian nodded, ‘she did’ Alex nodded, ‘fine, sorry’ ‘no need, I understand why you would have trust issues, you’re a band, you probably do issues better than music sometimes, I need some sleep’ Alex smirked as she closed the door, Jack laughing, ‘she’s amazing’ Rian laughing, Alex looked at them, ‘I do not do issues better than music’ Zack bursting into giggles, ‘thanks guys!’ Jack giggling.
-x-
Alex smiled, ‘you know that song you made?’ ‘the one at the beginning about Secrets?’ ‘yes?’ ‘what?’ ‘I want that as a secret song on the album’ Lucy smiled, ‘I like your style’ Alex grinned, ‘can you sing it?’ ‘only if you play the guitar for it, or it makes no sense?’ ‘good point’ Alex helping her record the whole thing, Alex grinned as heard the whole thing, ‘better lock it in your pocket taking this one to the grave..cos two can keep a secret if one of them is dead’ finishing, helping Alex with the guitar beat in the studio, ‘are you and Jack dating?’ ‘I stick to one rule about dating Alex, if a guy’s best friend asks best friend if they are dating someone and they say no, I ain’t dating them, so asking him is something I would suggest for my life at least’ Lucy smiled, ‘I am not something to be ashamed to be with no one is, and I won’t tolerate it’ Alex grinned, ‘I like that a lot’ ‘if anyone should know, I’ve heard Noel’ ‘you are not normal’ ‘thank you’.
Jack smiled, ‘are you and Lucy dating?’ Lucy hiding before Jack saw her close by, ‘would you be mad if I said yes, we’re trying to keep it on the DL cos she got this cos she didn’t fancy any of us, and you know’ ‘yeah, dating you doesn’t help’ Lucy coming in, Jack grinned, ‘you ok?’ ‘I’m great, the world is a beautiful place and I’m no longer afraid to die’ ‘that’s a band?’ ‘it is?’ Alex laughed, ‘I had no idea, but I am checking that out’ Jack laughing with her as she got coffee, ‘last week and wired, haha’ Alex laughed, ‘she is being really weird now’ Jack murmured, ‘I know why’ ‘why?’ Alex explaining, Jack grinned, ‘I didn’t know I was being awesome’ finding her, ‘Alex told me what you said’ Jack smirked, ‘I know’ laughing a little, kissing him deeply, Jack licking her lips, kissing passionately, ‘I love you’ ‘I love you too’ he grinned as she put her cup down, ‘my work is done’ ‘mine isn’t’ ‘eurgh’ ‘tonight, Jack’ kissing him.
Lucy arched from the bed as Jack kissed down her softly, he grinned going between her thighs, eating her out, ‘Jack, god’ he grinned as she pulled him telling what she liked, ‘god’ she whimpered gently as Jack used his fingers climaxing, his lips wet, Lucy kissing him, Jack going on top, making love gently with her, Lucy’s nails scratching his back, Jack grinned at her kissing her neck softly, as she caught his breath, ‘holy shit’ Jack chuckled, ‘good?’ ‘I have nothing to compare to, Jack but that was pretty incredible’ ‘oh, babe’ ‘don’t Jack’ kissing him deeply, making out and making love again, Lucy smiled holding him in bed, ‘are you staying with me, I starfish, I don’t know about you?’ trying to figure out a why she might ask that, Jack grinned, ‘would you mind?’ ‘Jack, we both need sleep, no point kicking one of us out of bed and ruining the last bits’ Jack grinned, ‘I love you’ ‘I love you too, when you’re tired, go to your room’ ‘ok’ resting her on him, ‘you’re a sweetheart’ ‘thank you pumpkin’ he grinned.
-x-
6 months later:-
'You upset?' 'I'm still upset Hostage Calm are broken up, Jack, No, I'm fine' he laughed, 'good, I was worried, cos I know i'm gone for our anniversary with this Europe tour' 'Jack, I can deal with it sweetheart, I think I knew what I was getting in to' Jack smiled, 'it's just the only person and she gets really nasty to Alex' Lucy looked at Jack, 'dude, never ever compare to me Lisa ever again' Jack laughed, Lucy smiled, 'I think bad things are happening if it's that bad' laughing together, 'you love what you do, Jack and quite frankly this album is your best thing you've done, go fucking kill it' Lucy smiled, 'I'm in love with you' 'I'm in love with you too' he grinned kissing her, 'I promise, I'll never do that' 'thank you, I have some reading to do before Summer School begins for the course, ok, so I'll be doing that when you go Warped, I'll be visiting' he grinned, 'good, you better' 'got my ticket already' 'good' kissing her.
Lucy smiled walking across Tinley Field, Chicago, the mid point of Warped, a girl collapsing in front of her, Lucy got down, the girl not breathing, Lucy beghun doing chest compressions, not really wanting to attach lips with strangers, ‘come on, someone get St John’s’ Lucy called as she checked the airways, ‘thank fuck, she’s breathing’ putting her in recovery, Lucy fell back on her knees, ‘fuck’ the girl beginning to be conscious, ‘what happened?’ ‘I think you just, you stopped breathing’ Lucy murmured, the girl looking at her as St John’s, ‘where are you from?’ ‘I’m from, I’m ok really now’ the girl pleaded with her eyes, ‘ermm, you know she’s ok, right, I’ll take care of her and I’m going backstage’ ‘ok’ ‘thank you’ Lucy smiled helping her up, ‘come on walk with me and explain’ ‘ok’.
Jack looked at the girl, ‘whose this?’ ‘this is Vanessa, she just almost died in front of me and she doesn’t wanna go home right now, and quite frankly, I don’t blame her’ ‘why?’ ‘Cos I live in an adoption home it took me three years to convince them to buy me a ticket’ she murmured, ‘oh man, how old are you?’ ‘Seventeen’ ‘oh, man, how long in care?’ ‘6 years’ she murmured, ‘they don’t even think I’ll go to college’ ‘trust me if I did, you can’ Jack smiled, ‘why? How do you know one another?’ Jack laughed, ‘Lucy’s my girlfriend, she’s also doing a degree in psychology’ ‘I had to do a gap year to afford to apply to university, if you wanna go, I will help and mentor you’ ‘you go to which one?’ ‘the best, John Hopkins’ ‘I’m down, but I am missing Pierce The Veil’ ‘come on, Alex is singing’ laughing.
Lucy smiled, ‘hello, I’m Lucy, from John Hopkins, I came to see Vanessa, she’s my mentee’ ‘Vanessa, she’s no chance’ ‘I’d like to make sure she does’ ‘good luck sweetheart, follow me’ following her, Lucy knocked, ‘you don’t have to knock’ ‘it’s her room’ ‘no, it’s a kid’s room’ the worker leaving, Lucy knocked anyway, ‘come in’ Lucy popped her head round, ‘mind if I come in’ ‘you came!?’ ‘I did, I promised’ Vanessa smiled, ‘so how can you help me?’ ‘Well, I know some people but you have to work hard with me kid, cos this is not easy’ Vanessa nodded, ‘I wanna be a doctor, I do all the classes it’s just I can’t afford the books’ ‘can you leave?’ ‘I can’ ‘come with me to my car boot’ laughing and walking, ‘these were my books, Vanessa, do you have a nickname?’ ‘Nessie’ ‘can I call you that?’ ‘No’ laughing, ‘sure’ ‘Nessie, take care of him, when you’re done, find someone else you can pay them forward to’ ‘I promise, I’ll be there mentor’.
Jack smiled, ‘I’m proud of you, working with that girl to get her into college’ ‘I’ve got an idea, and this is the seed’ Jack grinned, ‘you’re going to find more young people aren’t you?’ ‘I need to find people who give a shit, Jack, that’s the difficult bit’ he grinned, ‘you’ll do it, you’re that kind of person’ ‘I got Vanessa on John Hopkins Autumn Medicine Freshman week’ Jack grinned, ‘you did good, how?’ ‘I ermm, I accidentally added her name while I did some secretarial work’ Jack laughed, Lucy giggled, ‘I love you’ ‘I love you too’ kissing her softly, ‘I’m so glad we’re together Lucy’ ‘me too’ making love all night.
Vanessa walked with her, ‘my school couldn’t believe I got on this’ ‘well, I work in the medical school to pay my rent, but that’s between you and me kid’ Nessie laughed, ‘can we hang out if we both study here’ ‘why do you think I mentor you, I need friends’ laughing, ‘I’m kidding absolutely’ Vanessa nodded, ‘one question I will ask you, maybe twice a year?’ ‘is Zack single?’ ‘How did you know?’ ‘You looked at him on the bus like he was a box of chocolates’ Vanessa laughed, ‘seriously, though?’ Lucy laughed, ‘he’s not single, but I’ll keep you posted’ ‘you’re a babe, now let’s do this’ getting her in, Lucy smiled as she took it in her stride.
-x-
three years later:-
Jack smiled, ‘I think with Nessie you found someone who gave a shit’ ‘I was lucky to find someone who cared as much as I did’ ‘I wish she didn’t see me like a dad’ ‘you went to her ex’s house and told him to never ever call her again after he cheated, that is very dad like, it was kinda hot and made me a little bit broody’ Jack laughed, ‘good, cos I would like a family’ Jack beamed, ‘me too, I love doing education, why I’m staying when I leave in it and working on the charity stuff, but I would like to be kinda young when I have the first, so I have the energy’ ‘how young?’ ‘24 maybe, 25’ Jack smiled, ‘fine with me, I’ll be in my early thirties, you’re’ ‘23’ ‘oh, my gosh’ laughing.
Nessie smiled coming in, ‘thanks Zack’ ‘no problem’ he grinned, ‘ermm, do you wanna get a drink or something, maybe?’ Lucy looked up, Nessie gulped, ‘oh, please, that would be awesome’ Zack grinned, ‘I like you, you and Lucy both like wrestling but you’re single’ ‘I feel so special’ laughing as Zack hit himself in the face, ‘I’m sorry, the Rockwell’ ‘sure’ he grinned going, ‘holy shit, Lucy Caswell’ Lucy laughed, ‘it’s been years in the making’ laughing.
Lucy got in, ‘Jack, you’ll never believe, wow’ looking around, ‘this is beautiful’ he grinned, ‘well, I take care and treat you, like you do me, but I wanted to do something different’ ‘you’re adroable, pumpkin’ he grinned, ‘thanks sweetheart’ ‘aww’ Jack smiled as she wiped her eye gently, ‘come with me’ sitting her down and pulling the dome up in the middle of the pizza was a box, ‘marry me?’ ‘Today is ridiculous, yes’ Jack grinned, ‘what happened?’ ‘Zack asked Nessie out!’ Jack grinned, ‘good, cos he fancies her hard’ ‘really?’ sharing pizza and heading for bed.
they lived happily.
Alex looked at her as she made notes, ‘you write then?’ ‘I prefer it, you can read through it, make sure it’s ok to look through, then you can see my notes and then I’ll make a blog post’ ‘are you going to film?’ ‘I did a lot yesterday and I’ll do some more tomorrow, it’s a big thing to have in the room, Zack’s arm nearly broke the thing three times’ Alex laughed, ‘so, I’m doing it for the camera’s health’ laughing, ‘so, what’s your favourite band?’ ‘I love The Maine, I’m seeing them in Pomona next week’ Alex smiled, ‘why do you like him?’ ‘I like how they have a record for every situation’ Alex smiled, ‘you mean, they don’t all sound the same’ ‘I won’t rise to that, but it’s true, some bands can have that habit, problem with some bands is that when something doesn’t work, they will ignore every part of that record and not take the best bits of a success, it’s just not what The Maine do’ Alex looked at her, ‘you think we do that’ ‘honestly, Yes, but you have a fragile ego, Alex I’m not shocked, you hate being reminded of failure unless it’s lyrical, if there’s anything I’ve learnt about you in two days’ ‘geez’ ‘Psychology class of 2019, John Hopkins’ Alex smiled.
'Cos I'm a sad sad post teen..walking like a zombie..' singing along her to music on Spotify on her bed in her room, Jack knocked, 'come in' Lucy called, Jack smiled, 'wondered if you wanted to record us jamming' 'sure' Lucy nodded, 'I'll record it on my phone, cos that thing is a nightmare' Jack laughed as she came down and watched recording parts, 'so, you wanna play a game?' Jack looked at her, 'what?' 'It's a musical one, you pick a theme and you have to make a beat, a melody or a lyric that would work with that theme' Alex smiled, 'are you playing?' 'Sure, I'll try' 'fine, I'm down, might throw up some ideas' 'considering today' laughing a little, 'Whose got an idea?' 'Tim Burton, it's almost Halloween' Jack added, Lucy smiled picking up her notebook and thinknig for a bit, Alex smirked, 'I'll do better' 'we'll see Gaskarth, you over think everything, you're using an eraser already' Jack smiled, 'Lucy you go first' 'ok' picking up Alex's guitar, 'cos two can keep a secret, if one of them is dead' Alex smirked, 'that's good' laughing, and playing all evening.
-x-
'I recognise this' Jack smiled, 'Alex made it playing your game' 'that was a good game' Lucy smiled, 'you're a good writer?' 'I'm a poet to be honest, do spoken word so it's easy to just figure something out with a melody, I can't sing' 'you can' 'thank you, you are far too kind' Jack laughed, 'No, I'm not' Lucy filming some bits for the next update, 'I'll interview some of you guys later' Jack smiled, 'fine with me, how did you come up with that game?' 'Spoken word meetings, improvise' Jack nodded, 'I thought it would be perfect in a band actually' Jack smiled, 'glad you suggested it' 'good, glad you think so' 'get's you creative' 'definitely' Lucy nodded, 'can I buy you dinner later?' 'I don't know' Jack nodded, 'you wanna be professional?' 'It's just that's why they picked me, I'd feel like I lied to them' Lucy murmured, 'that's all' 'I had no idea, romance and love were dictated by rules' 'don't be upset with me, be upset with Hopeless' Lucy sighed getting back to work, 'though I'm studying in Baltimore next year, and you're going to be busy' he grinned, 'good to know' 'I am flattered' 'good' he grinned.
Jack knocked on her door, ‘I know we can’t go out to eat, so I brought the pizza to us?’ Lucy smiled, ‘I don’t particularly wanna give up particularly when you don’t want to either’ ‘two can keep a secret, now, huh?’ Jack grinned, ‘I think so’ laughing, ‘come in’ ‘what do you like in bands?’ ‘If I like them as people, you know, there’s some bands I see and I’m like no, no, no, you shouldn’t be allowed near people like me’ ‘who like?’ ‘Attila come to mind, I worked in Soundstage through my teenage years in Baltimore and oh my god they were assholes to juniors’ Jack smiled, ‘so you live in Baltimore’ ‘I do, Jack’ he grinned, ‘so when we get home’ ‘exactly, play it cool now, with your pizza and when I get back at the end of this, also considering the internet, you like them young’ Lucy murmured, ‘I was warned’ Jack looked shocked, ‘that wasn’t true, we’re friends, my god’ ‘I’m really sorry’ ‘it’s not your fault, oh my god’ Jack murmured, ‘sorry, well, I know now it’s not true, your reaction, it doesn’t matter’ ‘good, yes, you’re right’.
Lucy finished the blog post and then begun editing the video footage, playing bits of their song over the top of the video, amazed no one had come to check on her at all, Alex looked at her, ‘you’re not an intern, I just asked about you’ ‘no, they don’t consider me an intern, you are indeed right, it’s work experience, sorry?’ Jack sticking his head out, Alex looking at her, ‘fair enough, but they said you won a competition’ ‘I do believe I told you that’ Rian nodded, ‘she did’ Alex nodded, ‘fine, sorry’ ‘no need, I understand why you would have trust issues, you’re a band, you probably do issues better than music sometimes, I need some sleep’ Alex smirked as she closed the door, Jack laughing, ‘she’s amazing’ Rian laughing, Alex looked at them, ‘I do not do issues better than music’ Zack bursting into giggles, ‘thanks guys!’ Jack giggling.
-x-
Alex smiled, ‘you know that song you made?’ ‘the one at the beginning about Secrets?’ ‘yes?’ ‘what?’ ‘I want that as a secret song on the album’ Lucy smiled, ‘I like your style’ Alex grinned, ‘can you sing it?’ ‘only if you play the guitar for it, or it makes no sense?’ ‘good point’ Alex helping her record the whole thing, Alex grinned as heard the whole thing, ‘better lock it in your pocket taking this one to the grave..cos two can keep a secret if one of them is dead’ finishing, helping Alex with the guitar beat in the studio, ‘are you and Jack dating?’ ‘I stick to one rule about dating Alex, if a guy’s best friend asks best friend if they are dating someone and they say no, I ain’t dating them, so asking him is something I would suggest for my life at least’ Lucy smiled, ‘I am not something to be ashamed to be with no one is, and I won’t tolerate it’ Alex grinned, ‘I like that a lot’ ‘if anyone should know, I’ve heard Noel’ ‘you are not normal’ ‘thank you’.
Jack smiled, ‘are you and Lucy dating?’ Lucy hiding before Jack saw her close by, ‘would you be mad if I said yes, we’re trying to keep it on the DL cos she got this cos she didn’t fancy any of us, and you know’ ‘yeah, dating you doesn’t help’ Lucy coming in, Jack grinned, ‘you ok?’ ‘I’m great, the world is a beautiful place and I’m no longer afraid to die’ ‘that’s a band?’ ‘it is?’ Alex laughed, ‘I had no idea, but I am checking that out’ Jack laughing with her as she got coffee, ‘last week and wired, haha’ Alex laughed, ‘she is being really weird now’ Jack murmured, ‘I know why’ ‘why?’ Alex explaining, Jack grinned, ‘I didn’t know I was being awesome’ finding her, ‘Alex told me what you said’ Jack smirked, ‘I know’ laughing a little, kissing him deeply, Jack licking her lips, kissing passionately, ‘I love you’ ‘I love you too’ he grinned as she put her cup down, ‘my work is done’ ‘mine isn’t’ ‘eurgh’ ‘tonight, Jack’ kissing him.
Lucy arched from the bed as Jack kissed down her softly, he grinned going between her thighs, eating her out, ‘Jack, god’ he grinned as she pulled him telling what she liked, ‘god’ she whimpered gently as Jack used his fingers climaxing, his lips wet, Lucy kissing him, Jack going on top, making love gently with her, Lucy’s nails scratching his back, Jack grinned at her kissing her neck softly, as she caught his breath, ‘holy shit’ Jack chuckled, ‘good?’ ‘I have nothing to compare to, Jack but that was pretty incredible’ ‘oh, babe’ ‘don’t Jack’ kissing him deeply, making out and making love again, Lucy smiled holding him in bed, ‘are you staying with me, I starfish, I don’t know about you?’ trying to figure out a why she might ask that, Jack grinned, ‘would you mind?’ ‘Jack, we both need sleep, no point kicking one of us out of bed and ruining the last bits’ Jack grinned, ‘I love you’ ‘I love you too, when you’re tired, go to your room’ ‘ok’ resting her on him, ‘you’re a sweetheart’ ‘thank you pumpkin’ he grinned.
-x-
6 months later:-
'You upset?' 'I'm still upset Hostage Calm are broken up, Jack, No, I'm fine' he laughed, 'good, I was worried, cos I know i'm gone for our anniversary with this Europe tour' 'Jack, I can deal with it sweetheart, I think I knew what I was getting in to' Jack smiled, 'it's just the only person and she gets really nasty to Alex' Lucy looked at Jack, 'dude, never ever compare to me Lisa ever again' Jack laughed, Lucy smiled, 'I think bad things are happening if it's that bad' laughing together, 'you love what you do, Jack and quite frankly this album is your best thing you've done, go fucking kill it' Lucy smiled, 'I'm in love with you' 'I'm in love with you too' he grinned kissing her, 'I promise, I'll never do that' 'thank you, I have some reading to do before Summer School begins for the course, ok, so I'll be doing that when you go Warped, I'll be visiting' he grinned, 'good, you better' 'got my ticket already' 'good' kissing her.
Lucy smiled walking across Tinley Field, Chicago, the mid point of Warped, a girl collapsing in front of her, Lucy got down, the girl not breathing, Lucy beghun doing chest compressions, not really wanting to attach lips with strangers, ‘come on, someone get St John’s’ Lucy called as she checked the airways, ‘thank fuck, she’s breathing’ putting her in recovery, Lucy fell back on her knees, ‘fuck’ the girl beginning to be conscious, ‘what happened?’ ‘I think you just, you stopped breathing’ Lucy murmured, the girl looking at her as St John’s, ‘where are you from?’ ‘I’m from, I’m ok really now’ the girl pleaded with her eyes, ‘ermm, you know she’s ok, right, I’ll take care of her and I’m going backstage’ ‘ok’ ‘thank you’ Lucy smiled helping her up, ‘come on walk with me and explain’ ‘ok’.
Jack looked at the girl, ‘whose this?’ ‘this is Vanessa, she just almost died in front of me and she doesn’t wanna go home right now, and quite frankly, I don’t blame her’ ‘why?’ ‘Cos I live in an adoption home it took me three years to convince them to buy me a ticket’ she murmured, ‘oh man, how old are you?’ ‘Seventeen’ ‘oh, man, how long in care?’ ‘6 years’ she murmured, ‘they don’t even think I’ll go to college’ ‘trust me if I did, you can’ Jack smiled, ‘why? How do you know one another?’ Jack laughed, ‘Lucy’s my girlfriend, she’s also doing a degree in psychology’ ‘I had to do a gap year to afford to apply to university, if you wanna go, I will help and mentor you’ ‘you go to which one?’ ‘the best, John Hopkins’ ‘I’m down, but I am missing Pierce The Veil’ ‘come on, Alex is singing’ laughing.
Lucy smiled, ‘hello, I’m Lucy, from John Hopkins, I came to see Vanessa, she’s my mentee’ ‘Vanessa, she’s no chance’ ‘I’d like to make sure she does’ ‘good luck sweetheart, follow me’ following her, Lucy knocked, ‘you don’t have to knock’ ‘it’s her room’ ‘no, it’s a kid’s room’ the worker leaving, Lucy knocked anyway, ‘come in’ Lucy popped her head round, ‘mind if I come in’ ‘you came!?’ ‘I did, I promised’ Vanessa smiled, ‘so how can you help me?’ ‘Well, I know some people but you have to work hard with me kid, cos this is not easy’ Vanessa nodded, ‘I wanna be a doctor, I do all the classes it’s just I can’t afford the books’ ‘can you leave?’ ‘I can’ ‘come with me to my car boot’ laughing and walking, ‘these were my books, Vanessa, do you have a nickname?’ ‘Nessie’ ‘can I call you that?’ ‘No’ laughing, ‘sure’ ‘Nessie, take care of him, when you’re done, find someone else you can pay them forward to’ ‘I promise, I’ll be there mentor’.
Jack smiled, ‘I’m proud of you, working with that girl to get her into college’ ‘I’ve got an idea, and this is the seed’ Jack grinned, ‘you’re going to find more young people aren’t you?’ ‘I need to find people who give a shit, Jack, that’s the difficult bit’ he grinned, ‘you’ll do it, you’re that kind of person’ ‘I got Vanessa on John Hopkins Autumn Medicine Freshman week’ Jack grinned, ‘you did good, how?’ ‘I ermm, I accidentally added her name while I did some secretarial work’ Jack laughed, Lucy giggled, ‘I love you’ ‘I love you too’ kissing her softly, ‘I’m so glad we’re together Lucy’ ‘me too’ making love all night.
Vanessa walked with her, ‘my school couldn’t believe I got on this’ ‘well, I work in the medical school to pay my rent, but that’s between you and me kid’ Nessie laughed, ‘can we hang out if we both study here’ ‘why do you think I mentor you, I need friends’ laughing, ‘I’m kidding absolutely’ Vanessa nodded, ‘one question I will ask you, maybe twice a year?’ ‘is Zack single?’ ‘How did you know?’ ‘You looked at him on the bus like he was a box of chocolates’ Vanessa laughed, ‘seriously, though?’ Lucy laughed, ‘he’s not single, but I’ll keep you posted’ ‘you’re a babe, now let’s do this’ getting her in, Lucy smiled as she took it in her stride.
-x-
three years later:-
Jack smiled, ‘I think with Nessie you found someone who gave a shit’ ‘I was lucky to find someone who cared as much as I did’ ‘I wish she didn’t see me like a dad’ ‘you went to her ex’s house and told him to never ever call her again after he cheated, that is very dad like, it was kinda hot and made me a little bit broody’ Jack laughed, ‘good, cos I would like a family’ Jack beamed, ‘me too, I love doing education, why I’m staying when I leave in it and working on the charity stuff, but I would like to be kinda young when I have the first, so I have the energy’ ‘how young?’ ‘24 maybe, 25’ Jack smiled, ‘fine with me, I’ll be in my early thirties, you’re’ ‘23’ ‘oh, my gosh’ laughing.
Nessie smiled coming in, ‘thanks Zack’ ‘no problem’ he grinned, ‘ermm, do you wanna get a drink or something, maybe?’ Lucy looked up, Nessie gulped, ‘oh, please, that would be awesome’ Zack grinned, ‘I like you, you and Lucy both like wrestling but you’re single’ ‘I feel so special’ laughing as Zack hit himself in the face, ‘I’m sorry, the Rockwell’ ‘sure’ he grinned going, ‘holy shit, Lucy Caswell’ Lucy laughed, ‘it’s been years in the making’ laughing.
Lucy got in, ‘Jack, you’ll never believe, wow’ looking around, ‘this is beautiful’ he grinned, ‘well, I take care and treat you, like you do me, but I wanted to do something different’ ‘you’re adroable, pumpkin’ he grinned, ‘thanks sweetheart’ ‘aww’ Jack smiled as she wiped her eye gently, ‘come with me’ sitting her down and pulling the dome up in the middle of the pizza was a box, ‘marry me?’ ‘Today is ridiculous, yes’ Jack grinned, ‘what happened?’ ‘Zack asked Nessie out!’ Jack grinned, ‘good, cos he fancies her hard’ ‘really?’ sharing pizza and heading for bed.
they lived happily.