Teenage Dirtbag

*Author's Note: I know I fucked up by forgetting about Aimee and Zack being cousins, which might be confusing, but that'll be explained in a later chapter. Forget the whole Nate guy, she's there because of Zack*

Haley’s POV
Cassadee and I walked into the bar to find the guys setting up their gear. Today was their first ever performance and they had been going on and on about it all day, they were so excited yet so nervous. Of course I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I had already seen them play the setlist they would play tonight, because Cassadee and I had to approve it, but it wasn’t the same in Rian’s basement. Cass and I walked up to the stage to greet them. As soon as Jack spotted us he exclaimed my name and came running up to us like a little kid.
“Jack, do you want these people to take you seriously or what?” I asked laughing.
“Oh, I don’t care, I’m way too excited” he replied happily.
I shook my head laughing. “Oh, you’re such a child.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment” Jack replied.
“So, are you guys ready to rock?” Cassadee asked as soon as Rian joined her, Jack and me.
“Hell yeah!” Rian exclaimed. “It’s gonna be great!”
“There are quite a lot of people already!” I said proudly.
“Yeah well, I highly doubt they’re all here for us” Alex, who showed up next to Rian, said.
“Does that matter? They’ll still see you play right?” I shrugged. “So when are you on?”
“In about ten minutes, so we should probably check everything. Why don’t you guys get yourselves a drink. Say you’re with us and it’s free!” Rian suggested.
“Oh, if it’s free…” Cassadee said. “Have fun, you’ll be great”.
She gave Rian a kiss on the cheek, and turned around and headed for the bar.
“Okay, so think about the tips I gave you yesterday, Jack” I said.
“Yes mother” he replied sarcastically.
“Now don’t be a smart ass, I’m only trying to help” I said slightly offended.
“I know Hales, thanks” he said with a wink, before he stepped forward to hug me.
“Good” I said as he let go of me. “I’ll go set up the videocamera, wouldn’t want to miss anything.”

I had promised Jack I would record their first show, as it was something he would always want to remember. The bar tender had given me permission to install the camera on the balcony in the back of the bar, so that it would have a clear view. I went upstairs behind the bar and set up the camera on the balcony. I then went back downstairs and joined Cassadee at the bar.
“Look who showed up” Cassadee said as I sat down next to her.
I followed her gaze, and saw a pretty blonde girl standing a few inches away from us. A girl way too familiar. The one my best friend couldn’t keep his eyes off.
“What’s Aimee even doing here?” I whispered.
“I don’t know, but let’s find out” Cassadee said as she got up.
She pulled me from my bar stool and we stood a little closer to Aimee, trying to overhear the conversation she and the girl next to her, who I recognized to be her friend Jane, were having.
“I still don’t understand why we’re wasting our Friday night at a lame bar as this one” Jane whined.
“Because Nate wanted to check this band out” Aimee said matter of factly.
Seconds later, a brown haired guy showed up next to them. That must be Nate. I had never seen the guy, but the way Aimee looked at him said more than enough: it was the same way Jack looked at her.

My attention was then drawn to the stage, where the barkeeper was announcing my friends. The audience, except for Cassadee and I, applauded modestly when they appeared on the stage. Our excited screaming overruled the modest applause though. I saw Aimee look over her shoulder to see who those screaming idiots were.
“Doesn’t that blue haired freak go to our school?” I heard her whisper.
I could tell Cassadee heard it too, and was about to say something about it, but I shook my head. This was All Time Low’s moment, I wasn’t about to cause a scene. Seconds later they started playing their first song, which was a Green Day cover. They would only play covers, because they didn’t have any originals songs yet.
“Don’t they go to our school?” I heard Jane ask Aimee.
Though I was impressed she recognized them, I wished they would just shut up and let me enjoy my best friends play.
“Uhm yeah, I’ve seen those failed hair cuts before” she said superciliously.
She turned around to face me. “I think they’re friends with her”.
“They sure are and unlike you, I would like to enjoy their performance, so if you would just shut the fuck up, that would be great” I said with a big smile on my face.
Aimee gave me an angry look and turned back around. The crowd was applauding more enthusiastically now, they had just finished their first song. I could tell they weren’t exactly comfortable on stage yet. Instead of doing some chitchat, they just started playing the next song. Were these boys the same boys that wouldn’t shut up for 5 seconds when I hang out with them? They played four more songs, and except for a little standard “are you having fun?”-talk, they didn’t say much. Then Alex started talking into the microphone.

“So, this next song is our first and so far only original song. I wrote this years ago, but only let the band hear it a few days ago. In a few days we made a full-band version from my guitar-only acoustic song, so if it’s not that good, I apologize in advance, but this song means a lot to me, and I really wanted to play it at our first show. It’s called ‘Lullabies’.” he said.
Cassadee and I looked at each other surprised. Clearly she didn’t know they were doing an original song either. I had never even heard the song. How did they even rehearse a whole song without me knowing it? I basically didn’t miss a single band practice… They then started playing the song.
“Make it a sweet, sweet goodbye, it could be for the last time and it’s not right…” Alex sang.
From just the lyrics I could figure out the subject of this song pretty quickly. The death of Alex’s brother. I didn’t know much about his death, I just knew Alex didn’t like to talk about it, so I never even bothered bringing it up. Just knowing the subject, and hearing the emotions in Alex’s voice and seeing them in his eyes brought tears to mine. I could tell this song was more personal than the ones they played before. This was his story. When the song ended, I applauded very loudly. It was pretty damn brave of him to play a song so personal live. After Lullabies they played two more covers, ending their show with Dammit by Blink-182.

After they went off stage, Cassadee and I went backstage to hang out with them.
“That was so awesome!” Cassadee exclaimed when we were a few feet away from them.
I went to hug Jack. “You guys did really great! Did you notice the love of your life in the crowd?”
“Wait, Aimee is here?” Jack asked. “Why?”
“I don’t know, why don’t you go find out” I said.
While Jack went into the bar to see if he could find Aimee, though he probably wouldn’t say a word to her, I walked up to Alex, who was sitting on an old couch.
“Hey, you okay?” I asked.
Alex looked up. “Huh? Oh yeah, I’m fine…” he muttered.
“No you’re not” I stated. “Can I sit down?”
He nodded and I sat down.
“What makes you think I’m not okay?” he asked, looking at me.
“Well, for one, your eyes” I said.
Alex rubbed his eyes. “What do you see in my eyes?” he asked.
“Sadness” I replied. “That song, Lullabies, it was beautiful. So pure... It was about your brother, wasn’t it?”
“Yeah” Alex muttered after a short silence.
“I’m sorry you had to go through that” I said softly, laying my hand down on his shoulder.
“Oh well, you’ve been through much worse” he shrugged.
“Says who?” I asked sharply. “And does that matter? We all go through our own shit, and there’s no need to compare it with someone else’s shit. You lost your brother. That is horrible, no matter what anyone else has been through”.
Alex smiled. A watery smile. “Thanks Hales… I mean Haley, sorry” he said.
Now it was my turn to smile. Jack was the only one who called me Hales. I figured Alex thought we weren’t close enough for him to call me Hales.
“Hales is fine” I said winking. “If you ever need someone to talk to, just give me a call. I’m a great listener.”
“Thanks for the offer, I really appreciate it” Alex said smiling.
“Hey, that’s what friends are for. Are you gonna be okay?” I asked.
“Yeah, I will be” Alex replied.
“Wanna see Jack be awkward around Aimee? It’s hilarious” I suggested.
Alex laughed. “You bet!”
We got up. I turned to walk to the bar, when Alex grabbed my arm, and pulled me in for a hug.
“Thanks” he whispered.
I smiled, and wrapped my arms around him.
“Anytime” I replied whispering.
When he let go of me after a few seconds, he gave me a thankful smile.
“Well, let’s go play disaster tourists” he said with a wink, and we walked into the bar to find Jack and Aimee.