I Like the Remix

By the time Tori had returned with various liquors and three different kinds of ice cream, Raelyn had forced herself up and gone to sit in the living room. Her fear was if she had stayed in her room, remembering things, Tori would come in and she would feel horrible because Raelyn was still in tears. So she had forced herself out of her bed, washed her face and came and sat in front of the television watching an old episode of Mythbusters. Tori handed her a spoon and the pint of chocolate ice cream. “What do you feel like drinking? I got beer, Tito’s, Jack Daniels, Mike’s Hard, and some of those fruity wine cooler thingies you like sometimes.”

“I think I’m just gonna down a few kamikazes…” Raelyn admitted quietly, a forced smile sent towards Tori. The girl nodded with a slight sigh and headed into the kitchen to make the drink and put the rest of the ice cream in the freezer. She quickly combined the vodka, triple sec and lime juice before bringing it out to Raelyn who had abandoned the ice cream after a few bites. “Thanks.” She gave a nod of appreciation before downing the drink quickly.

“You’re just going to drink until you black out?” Tori asked, the concerned look coming back to her face as she thought of the messages still on her friend’s phone.

“That’s the plan. No worries though, I’m not going to do this every night.” She stated firmly before heading into the kitchen to make her own version with a lot more liquor in it. Tori just watched her leave before picking up the ice cream and digging the spoon into it, her curiosity was getting the better of her. All she knew for sure was that Matt and Raelyn’s relationship had come to an abrupt end that evening… But she wanted to know why.

The two had seemed completely happy before making their way over to the family get together. Hell, Tori had been concerned that they weren’t going to make it to the family gathering with the looks they kept giving one another. Although, she had been relieved when they had made it out the door with all clothes on, and the car keys in hand. She frowned in thought trying to figure out what could have happened at the party to cause the break up. Was it tied to Zacky? Or maybe her insane mother… Was her sister involved? Tori frowned in thought as Raelyn walked back in and flopped down on the couch with her drink in hand. Victoria took one close look at her and felt her chest ache for her friend at the sight of the emptiness in her eyes. She hadn’t seen her look quite like this since high school.

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Raelyn nervously ran her fingers through her hair, she felt insecure with her glasses on. It made her think back to high school, but she had no other option… Her new contacts would be in tomorrow. But Matt had interviews and a show in Las Vegas tomorrow, so their date had to be tonight. She smoothed out the wrinkles in her tank top and tugged at her skirt. Why was she freaking out over her clothes? Matt had seen her multiple times in the blandest of clothes… He wouldn't care what she was wearing, so why had she spent an hour digging through her dresser for the perfect outfit?

Her phone went off reminding her that she needed to meet him at the train station in half an hour and she slid on her silver flats. After taking one final glance in the mirror, she grabbed her phone, purse and keys and headed out the door promising Tori she would be back later. She parked in the lot, paid the fee and headed into the train station and started pacing back and forth nervously when she didn’t see him.

She went to pull her phone out when he tapped her on the shoulder, and whispered in her ear… “Boo.” He started laughing as she jumped and then turned and glared. “What?”

“Don’t sneak up on me! I could’ve hit you… Or got you with pepper spray!” Raelyn mumbled as her left hand shot up to her chest. Matt continued to laugh before grabbing her hand and tugging her back outside. “Where are we going?”

“That’s a surprise.” He teased as he led her to his rental car. “I like the glasses. Don’t worry. You can trust me.” He promised as he put on his sunglasses and unlocked the car. He opened the passenger door for her and watched as she took a seat. He went around the car and got in, and started the car. He turned on the radio and started driving.

“Thanks. I almost never wear them.” About half an hour later, he pulled into a parking space and turned the car off. “A beach?” Raelyn asked, somewhat surprised.

“We could go to a movie or dinner… But that’s all boring typical first date stuff. I wanted to do something different.” He shrugged. “You coming or not?”

Raelyn got out of the car and offered up her hand. Matt gave her a half smile and took her hand before leading her out by the water. “So how’s the recording going?”

“It’s going good. How about the modeling thing, are they still trying to get you to cover up your tats for shoots?” He questioned as they continued along.

“Some yes, some no. Hopefully it’ll end… I mean I know certain shoots will always need them covered but… I don’t want to. I’m proud of the artwork.” Raelyn stated with a smile. “I actually want to get one on the back of my left shoulder soon.”

“Oh really?” Matt asked, seeming genuinely interested, something Raelyn wasn’t used to when talking about tattoos. “You wanna get it today? It’ll be a first date you will never forget!”

Raelyn looked up at him for a minute, trying to judge whether or not he was kidding. “Yeah, why not.” The two headed back for his car, Raelyn looking up tattoo shops that were nearby. Within the next hour, the two were in the back of a shop talking with a tattoo artist named Dave. Raelyn showed the man her phone with a picture of what she was thinking about.

“Alright, well as awkward as this sounds, your shirt is going to have to come off.” Dave stated plainly.

“I’ll look away if you want.” Matt stated with a gentlemanly smile.

“It’s fine.” Raelyn pulled her tanktop up over her head, and then after having the stencil placed and approving it, was laying down on the table waiting for Dave to get started. “I have to say, this has to be the best first date I’ve ever been on.” She told Matt with a smile as she reached forward with her right arm and took his hand in hers. “Sorry you have to stand there and be bored.”

“Not bored. So why butterflies?” Matt let his curiosity get the better of him.

“I like that they signify change. I feel like I’ve changed a lot since high school, and I want to symbolize that change in art.” Raelyn admitted with a happy smile.

Raelyn woke up with a pounding head and an aching heart. She reached back and ran her fingers along the shoulder her butterfly tattoo was on. She forced herself out of bed and headed into the shower, Tori had warned her that they had a shoot today. Unfortunately, it was for Avenged Sevenfold again. Apparently they had done so well, that the director and Larry had wanted to use them for more projects. After a long shower, she stared at her reflection in the mirror. Thankfully her eyes weren’t bloodshot… So with a bit of makeup… She wouldn’t look too hungover.

She pulled on a pair of denim shorts, the tank top she had worn on her first date with Matt and a pair of Nike gym shoes. She brushed and dried her hair before meeting Tori in the kitchen. She headed for the freezer for some eggo waffles and stayed silent, not wanting to talk about the elephant in the room. She knew Tori wanted to know the details of the break up, but Raelyn knew as soon as she started to explain everything, she would be in tears all over again.

The two made their way to her car and she headed for the studio. Raelyn watched the scenery go by and closed her eyes. She bit her lip as the next memory came to her.

“It’s so beautiful out here. Thanks for inviting me.” Raelyn stated as she looked around his backyard in awe. “Are you sure it’s okay, though? You guys have been so busy.”

“It is. Charlotte is happy to see you again too. She’s been dying for a spa date, and she deserves a break from Evann every once in awhile.” He joked. “I’m really excited for you to meet Evann though.” He admitted, a serious look on his face.

“Me too. I hope he likes me.” Raelyn admitted shyly. “What if he doesn’t like me?” The panic in her voice sounded foreign to her.

“What’s not to like? You’re sweet and caring… And you like to play! Plus, I think you’ll steal his heart with your skateboarding.” Matt promised with a grin. “Anyways, let’s go explore the inside!” He grabbed her hand and pulled her inside. Once they made it to the kitchen, he lifted her onto the counter and closed the distance between them and pressed his lips to hers.

Raelyn was pulled from the memory as the car came to a stop. “Well, let’s go walk into hell.” She mumbled as she pulled her sunglasses from her face. She walked out into the morning sunlight and tried not to cringe away from it as Tori walked up next to her. The girls headed into the studio and down the hall towards where they were told to meet the boys.

Tori walked in and rolled her eyes at the fact that of course Meaghan and Michelle were here with Brian and Zack. “Can we try and finish this up with as soon as possible? We appreciate the opportunity, really.”

“What, Matt couldn’t make it?” Zacky asked sarcastically, an evil smile coming to his face. Matt Sanders looked over at him confused before looking towards Raelyn who let out a shaky breath. Her fists clenched at their sides, and started to shake.

“I’m only going to say this once, so all of you listen up.” She stated quietly, but in a venomous tone. “Unless you want me to knock your teeth down your throat, you will not bring up Tuck or my love life again. We are here for business, so keep it professional. We don’t give an ounce of a fuck about your personal lives, so don’t ask us about ours.” Raelyn made direct eye contact with Zacky, the dark look in her eyes had him taking a step back. “What are we supposed to wear?”

The director took them to another room where they were told to change into bikinis. “Ay dios mio! What happened to you?” One of the girls who were there to help asked.

“I fell. Nothing makeup can’t cover up.” Raelyn answered monotonously. She headed back out and leaned against the wall as Tori changed. Of course she was running into Meaghan and Zacky.

“Aw, your boyfriend like to throw you around a bit?” She asked snarky.

Raelyn glared harshly. “Actually I like to skateboard… Cement leaves bruises, ya know? Now I suggest you walk away before you lose a tooth.” Meaghan just snickered. “This job doesn’t mean that much to me.” Raelyn reasoned with an evil smirk of her own. She clenched her right fist and nailed Meaghan in the face, satisfied when the blond fell backwards, her nose gushing blood. “Have a nice life.” She stepped over the fallen blond and headed out towards the studio. “Have a nice shoot.” She walked out into the sunlight and leaned back against the bricks and closed her eyes.

“Oh my god! What are you doing?!” Raelyn rushed into the room and tried to tug the yearbook from his hand. “Noooo! Stop!” She tried and failed to hide the pictures he was looking at. “I knew bringing you home was a bad idea!” She grumbled as she flopped down on the couch and crossed her arms over her chest.

He laughed at her pout. “What’s the matter, Rae? Write secret love notes in here?” Matt joked. “You keep saying you hated your high school self… But you don’t look nearly as bad as you make yourself sound. And it looks like you were pretty smart.”

“I was a huge nerd. Mathlete, science Olympiad… I was a couple of points away from being class valedictorian.” Raelyn admitted with a sigh. “I don’t let anyone who sees those pictures leave alive you know.” Her voice deadly serious.

“Maybe we can come to a compromise.” Matt smirked as he put the yearbook down and pinned her down to the couch.

“Mmm,” She murmured as he kissed her neck. “I think that could be arranged.” She stated as she turned to look up at him and then wrapped her arms around his neck so he couldn’t put anymore distance between them. “But it’s going to cost you more than a couple of kisses.” A teasing smirk came to her face. Who knew house sitting would end up being this much fun?