I Like the Remix

Raelyn woke up and shot up when she realized she was in a bed. It wasn’t her room either. Her heart was racing as she looked around the room frantically. She narrowed her eyes at the realization that she was in Zacky’s bedroom. She looked to her left to see that a rag had fallen off the bed at some point. She leaned over to pick it up and frowned in thought at the fact that it was still slightly damp...Her brow furrowed in confusion, why had he gone out of his way to take care of her. He could’ve just left her where she had been around the corner. She heard a phone vibrate, grabbed her glasses from the nightstand and put them on before grabbing her phone. It was Tony telling her he was going to post the video and photos as soon as he got home, and that he was sorry about all of the backlash.

She let him know it was okay, and that she was talking with her friend about the possibility of suing whoever was responsible for it. She promised she’d talk to him later and then checked the time, it was nine in the morning… She found herself surprised she had slept that long. She slid out from under the covers and with her phone gripped tight in her right hand, started walking towards the door. She smoothed down her skirt and grabbed her gymshoes from next to the door. She slipped them on and listened for any kind of noise before she opened the door. She stepped out into the hallway and looked around. There were a few other doors along the hallway, leaving her questioning why he had her stay in his room. She shook her head and walked towards the staircase just to stop when she heard Brian’s voice.

“Michelle’s getting obnoxious. She threw a hissy fit the second we got home yesterday.” He paused and then imitated her annoying voice. “‘Oh Brian, why did your dad invite those stupid bitches. The least he could have done was make your slutty ex stay outside when dinner was served, like the dog she is.’”

“Sounds brutal. Please tell me you weren’t stupid enough to speak up against that.” Zacky’s voice spoke up and Raelyn frowned.

“Of course I did. It’s why I’m here now. I wasn’t going to stay home and listen to her fucking bitch all over again. I’m surprised you bowed out so early last night.” Brian commented as Raelyn stayed frozen to her spot. She remembered the kind of mind Brian had… And she really didn’t want him going back to his bandmates and claiming that Zacky had ‘tapped’ that. She cringed, and sighed, choosing to take a seat on the top stair.

“Yeah, I was just exhausted. Plus Meaghan was annoying the shit out of me. What she did yesterday was just rude.” Zacky sighed.

“Michelle seems to think that it’s true.” Brian stated, his tone made it sound like he didn’t really care that Meaghan had made Raelyn angry enough to just leave. “But yeah, she didn’t have to make a huge scene about it. But what did you expect, when you broke up with her, it was right after shit went down with Raelyn… Of course she’s going to retaliate like it’s Raelyn’s fault.”

Wow, who knew he actually had a brain in there. Raelyn found herself frustrated that she couldn’t see the reactions on their faces as they had this conversation. She bit her lip in anticipation as she waited for Zacky’s response.

“I didn't break up with her over Raelyn… I mean Raelyn definitely played a part in it.” He reasoned with a sigh. “But it's not like I've been happy…”

“You seemed happy before Raelyn reappeared though…” Brian's spoken thought drifted off.

She heard a scoff. “You're one to talk… Your dad invited your ex back into your life by inviting her yesterday.” Zacky’s voice sounded defensive and Raelyn found herself frowning at the thought of Tori being dragged back into everything. “You think Michelle didn't notice you staring at Tori yesterday, what happened after I left last night?”

Raelyn let out a surprised gasp and quickly covered her mouth as Brian went to speak. “Not much, Michelle spent the night talking to Meaghan. Tori kept to herself until she told my dad she was leaving.” Raelyn’s phone vibrated and she accidentally dropped it and cringed as it bounced down the stairs and clattered on the wood floor, catching both boys’ attention.

She swallowed nervously before walking down the stairs and faking a stretch when she came into sight. She was about to explain herself when her new ringtone for Tori started playing. Lifeline by Papa Roach started playing and she quickly answered it to avoid Zacky’s curious glance, and Brian’s confused glance. “Hey, yeah… I’m gonna be home soon. Tony’s posting the footage and photos today to dispel some of the rumors.” She listened to what Tori had to say and then said her goodbye and hung up. “So, I need to get home. It’s been… Interesting…” She stated with a shrug before walking towards the door just to be stopped by Brian.

“No, no. It’s fine. I wasn’t aware I was interrupting something. I’ll call you later, Zack.” He nodded towards Zacky and walked out, closing the door in Raelyn’s face. She let out a sigh before turning back to Zacky.

---

Victoria hung up the phone and frowned. The text claiming she was fine and would be home the following day had been strange and hadn’t sounded like Raelyn but Tori wasn’t about to question a best friend who had been openly humiliated in front of her family and others. She ran her fingers through her hair as she stared at her cell phone for a few minutes more before finally putting it down.

She sighed as she went to look in the cabinets for something to eat. After opening a few cabinets and then the fridge, she realized that they were in dire need of a grocery shopping trip. She was hungry now, and after what Raelyn had gone through the day before… the last thing she needed was to have to go shopping. Victoria went and took a quick shower and changed into a pair of denim jeans, a black Rebels Saints tank top and red peep toe heels, despite her want to be in sweats. She grabbed her purse and keys and headed towards the door.

She went to the local grocery store and started walking the aisles. Once she had tossed different cereals and other breakfast foods, she headed towards the produce section to get some fruit. She was looking at oranges when she heard an unexpected voice behind her. “The one on the left looks more ripe…” She dropped both on the floor in shock as she turned to glare up at Brian. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.” He bent down to pick up the oranges.

“I’m sorry, it’s just weird to keep running into you everywhere. Is there a reason you’re stalking me in the produce section?” She asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

“You need to check your attitude. It’s a grocery store.” Brian overemphasized as he placed the oranges back in the bin. “I’m not stalking you, I came to pick up food for the house.” Brian stated with a shrug.

“Oh really? You don’t have Michelle come do that for you? Last I recall… Shopping was beneath you.” Tori stated, getting angry with his frustration towards her.

“People change, Tori. And okay, fine. I’m only here because I’m waiting for Michelle to leave for work before I go home.” He relented, a defeated look on his face. “I was at Zacky’s but Raelyn was there.” Tori’s eyebrows shot up in surprise as she looked looked up at Brian. Brian immediately wondered if he said something he shouldn’t have.

“She’s at Zacky’s?” Tori asked, completely in shock. “Why?”

“I don’t know… She dropped her phone down the stairs, made it seem like she was going to leave but I left first. I know Zack wanted to talk to her about what Meaghan did yesterday.” He shrugged. “I didn’t think he’d be doing it so soon.” Brian still looked confounded on why Tori seemed so shocked. “You didn’t know…” He realized a moment later.

“No.” She confirmed angrily. “I didn’t know. Now if you’ll excuse me, I don’t like being this close to you. It disgusts me.” She sneered in his direction as she took three steps away from him. She grabbed the cart and started to walk away.

“Don’t get mad at me because she didn’t tell you where she was. It’s not my fault your friend is keeping secrets.” He grumbled, rolling his eyes in the process.

She turned on heel to glare at him. “Don’t talk about Rae. Don’t even think about her. Just go back to your whore of a wife that probably doesn’t even realize you were going to propose to me with the exact same ring.”

Brian’s whole demeanor changed the second the words left her mouth. “H-how…”

“You had me go get your watch from the bedside table. You must have forgotten that was where you hid the ring.” Tori muttered quietly. “Maybe it was a blessing in disguise that you never got down on one knee.” She turned around and didn’t miss the hurt in his eyes before she walked towards the liquor department.

---

Raelyn was seated on Zacky’s couch as he watched her from the chair. She was clutching the bottle of water in her hands, almost hard enough to make it explode. Her eyes glued to the bottle so she didn’t have to look up at him. “I suppose…” She paused, trying to figure out the right way to say what she needed to say. “I should say thank you.”

Zacky frowned at the tone in her voice. “Is it really that hard for you to say that?”

Raelyn looked up and met his gaze. “It’s just hard to accept that you did something nice for me.” She admitted as she put the bottle down so she wouldn’t pop it open by mistake. “You’ve never been nice to me.”

“And I’m sorry for that. You didn’t deserve to be treated like that.” He admitted quietly, his eyes dropping to the floor as Raelyn took in every action to try and figure out whether or not he was being sincere or not. “And I’m sorry Meaghan is being obnoxious.”

“It’s not your fault.” Raelyn sighed. “Well, maybe it is. You seem to date some real winners… Isn’t your ex-wife a playboy bunny now?” She asked as she recalled running into Gina at a photo shoot. She smiled slightly as he turned away, his cheeks flushing slightly. “At least she had a heart…” Raelyn went on to reason, trying to get his head away from whatever images he may have seen since she became a ‘model.’

“Yeah. I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.” He shrugged and cleared his throat. “So you and Matt were pretty serious?” He questioned, quickly changing the subject.

“He meant the world to me. Sometimes, when I’m feeling selfish, I wish he had never met Charlotte… But then I think of Evann and those thoughts go away… He’s so sweet and adorable.” Raelyn smiled slightly. “So if this is what’s best for him… Then it’s what needed to happen.”

Zacky looked over at her in awe, “That’s really… Mature of you.” He stated, unsure of how to word it without making it sound insulting. “You look like you’re feeling better.”

“Yes, and I should get home before Tori has the police searching for me.” She stood up and grabbed her phone, she started scrolling through her apps to get to Uber when Zacky stood up quickly.

“I can drive you.” He offered taking a step towards her. She looked up at him confused and shrugged. He ran to his room for his wallet and came back for his car keys. He walked to the door and held it open for her. She silently walked out the door and over to the passenger side of his car. He unlocked the doors and got in. “So, I’m sorry if I’m making things weird for you.” He admitted as he took his time actually starting the car up, refusing to actually look at her.

Raelyn let out a long sigh. “It’s alright. Like I said, I should probably thank you.” She glanced over as he finally put the key in the ignition and started it. She bit her lip when he finally looked up at her. “Thank you. You didn’t have to come after me, or take care of me… I appreciate that you did.” She finally said aloud.

Zacky nodded with a small smile on his face. “You’re welcome.” He pulled out of the driveway and thought about what else he could say to her. “I’m sorry I ruined your shirt. And embarrassed you… You could have just let me get pulled over for a DUI.” He admitted as he kept his eyes on the road and continued towards her apartment.

Raelyn’s eyes widened, Zacky, whom she never knew to apologize for anything, was apologizing to her for not one but multiple things. “It’s okay… Even if it was one of my favorite shirts.” She teased, feeling uneasy with the seriousness in the conversation. The Escalade came to a stop in the parking lot. “Thank you for the ride home. I’ll…” She paused, it’s not like she was going to ‘see him later.’ She frowned in thought before deciding on a reasonable answer. “I’ll see you around.” She made sure she had her phone, and got out of the car. She waved once she had taken a step back, and then hurried up to her apartment.