24 Floors.

What the hell was I doing here?

I clutched the thick envelope to my chest, more out of anxiety than anything else. I didn't belong here. I wasn't even a huge fan of All Time Low to begin with, so why was I standing in the VIP line with about 30 other teens and adults, hearts probably pounding faster than mine as they waited to meet their idols?

As I watched everyone around me interact, I realized I was the only one in this line without a parent accompanying me, specifically a father.

Fuck, it was Sunday, wasn't it?

It was Father's day.

My arms wrapped even further around my torso, the manila crumpling as it folded to my body. Did my mom even know what today was? She certainly wouldn't have sent me here if she did. She knew how I felt about dads; surely she wouldn't knowingly feed me to a crowd of them? No, it was purely coincidence that Father's day was the start of our week long vacation. This was the first time she had been able to get a week off for months, and according to her, the only time All Time Low would be in the area for quite awhile.

I hadn't had a choice in the matter, really. I hadn't even known this was part of the plan until 5 minutes before when I was told to take my bag and get in line.

"Oh, and don't forget this!" Her voice was overly excited, almost nervous, as she handed me an envelope that easily weighed five pounds. "I want you to meet them, but you know how much I like All Time Low, too. Here, give this to Jack - he's got a blond stripe in his hair - and make sure he opens it in front of you." It was an odd request, but my mom was obviously excited about it, and I was not about to deny her. This was the first time I could remember that we had gone more than an hour without fighting. Ruining it was not on my agenda, especially when in the next week I would have nothing but her. "Have fun, Jayden!" Something was off with her, but I couldn't tell what. Deciding I could leave it until after the concert, I let her go.

The group of girls in front of me started screaming, and at the same time all of their dads and I threw our hands to our ears. This could really only mean one thing.

The doors were opening.

There was something special about meeting people that you literally had to pay to meet, even if you didn't really know them. That, and the rush of fans crowding around me, tall fathers in tow, left me feeling small and alone. I let myself drift to the back of the group; this way, hopefully there would be less people around when I would more than likely embarrass myself in front of the band. I barely even knew their names!

Thankfully, my anxiety attack was cut short when a door opened and four men made their way to the small crowd. Separating from each other, people crowded around each of them. I could barely see them taking selfies, laughing with fans, thanking dads for bringing their kids, and promising a night they would never forget. I wanted to force myself to go to one of them, but my feet wouldn't move. They stayed glued near the entrance we came in and my brain couldn't make my legs move towards even the closest group.

I could feel security staring holes into me, so just to look busy, I pulled out my phone. Opening up my google app, I realized I may have been the only person in history to google "All Time Low Members" while at an All Time Low meet & greet. Skimming over their Wikipedia page, I quickly matched names to faces and realized the "Jack" I was supposed to give the envelope to had the biggest crowd of fans. Of course he did.

"Hey!" My previously paralyzed body jumped away from the voice as a small yelp escaped my lips.

I kept my eyes focused to the ground so I wouldn't have to see all of the eyes surely on me. I didn't even look at the man in front of me, positive it was some dad who had seen me alone. I appreciated the concern, but I didn't need it from a parent. "Hello" I said politely.

"Are you okay? You look pretty nervous over here. Do you need me to get you anything? Water? A seat, maybe?" His voice was soft, soothing; I was grateful he didn't try to touch me. He seemed to know exactly what to do when a kid was in the middle of an anxiety attack.

"I-I think I'm okay. I just...I can't do crowds." I forced myself to laugh, but the man was not convinced.

"Is your father here somewhere? Can I find him for you?"

I scoffed, like I always did when someone mentioned my father. The thought seemed to knock off some of my worry and replace it with bitterness. "Haven't got one of those. Well, I guess I do, but he's a bit of a lowlife. I haven't met him once; he put my mom through hell. Never even paid child support." I made sure everyone who asked knew how shitty my father was. I'd spent nights listening to my mom cry through the walls because she couldn't pay for bills and I'd watched her struggle to keep two jobs and get me to school on time. Even a check or a check-in from time to time would have been better than the absolute nothing we got. If I ever met him, I would never forgive him.

"Ah. I understand - well, I don't understand, but I've heard enough stories like that." I let my eyes flicker up, meeting the man's suddenly familiar face.

"You-You're...Rain, right?"

He laughed "Rian." My face flushed and I once again stared at my converse. "People have fucked it up worse, don't worry about it. What's your name?"

I already really liked Rian. Even though I messed up his name at his meet & greet, he didn't make me feel like an idiot. He seemed like the type of person who I could tell I murdered someone and he wouldn't even flinch. "Jayden."

His grin was bright. "Cool name, I like it." He eyed the other fans. No one seemed to be looking our way, so he turned back to me. "So, is this like a gift or something?" Rian asked, gesturing to the envelope.

"I'm actually not too sure." I laughed genuinely this time, and he joined me. "Really, my mom is the huge All Time Low fan in our family, and she said she wanted Jack to open this in front of me." Rian gave me a confused look, probably similar to the one I had given my mom. "I know, it's weird, but I wasn't just going to tell her 'no'."

He nodded slowly. "Right, of course. Do you want me to get him now? I don't think he'll mind."

I was skeptical. Jack looked so happy talking with fans and messing around. I didn't want to ruin his fun, but then again, this wasn't for me. He could deal with me for five minutes while making my mom happy. "Yeah, thanks!"

"Yeah! Maybe if you're around after the show you can tell me how it goes!"

An eager smile broke out on my face as he walked away to Jack's circle of fans. They talked for a few minutes, and Jack waved goodbye to the people around him. "Sorry guys, I have to leave you with my uglier half." He blew kisses to the crowd and I wasn't sure if I wanted to laugh at his obnoxiousness or be annoyed by it. Taking in everyone else's reaction, I decided to laugh it off.

He approached me with a bounce in his step, and when he reached me he immediately bowed to his knees. "Jack Barakat, at your service! What can I do for you, my good sir?" He asked in a terrible British accent.

I shoved the envelope to his chest. "I-here. It's from my mom and sh-she said you should open it in front of me."

He chuckled at my delivery, but took it immediately and flashed me a wide smile as he tore away the adhesive. "Thanks for giving it to me."

I didn't reply; I was too excited to see what was in the orange-brown wrapping. As thrilled as he was, Jack took his time opening the gift, not wanting to damage any of its contents. His long fingers handled the package with care, as if it were a baby. Finally, he pulled out a stack of papers. His eyebrows drew together as he read the note, his face holding disbelief until he looked at the second page. "What is it?" I asked after minutes of no response.

"It-It..." His confidence from when he first came to me was gone, and not an ounce of color was in his face.

"Jack?" I held my hands out closer to him in case he needed to grab them; he looked to either be about to pass out or throw up. Across the room, a pair of eyes under purple hair met mine. Shooting him what I hoped to be a worried glance, he instantly disentangled himself from the fans near him and came to us in a fast walk.

"Jack?" The guy asked. By his face, I had him identified as Alex Gaskarth, the lead singer of All Time Low. He took the papers from Jack's hands easily and paged through them faster than his co-member had. "What the fuck? This is-"

His sentence didn't get any further before Jack passed out, falling into the support of Alex and I's arms as security, the rest of the band, and worried fans crowded around us.