Another Night on Mars

AJ glanced down at her phone as she felt it vibrate the entire table. Raising a brow, she made a mental note to get back to the text once her best friend was finished with her story on how life hadn’t been the same since AJ had been gone for the last six months touring. Life had been hectic for the two of them; AJ had been going nonstop since she had joined Aimless just shy of four years ago while Lexy was going through the stressful experience of IVF. It seemed like time was finally standing still for the two of them to play catch up and talk like they used to. Granted, Lexy was all for AJ to go out and follow her dream but there were moments where she needed her sister from a different mister to help her through some tough times.

After Lexy had finished her rant about how her husband seemed to disregard and shrug off the fact of her inability to conceive a child naturally, her attention was drawn towards AJ’s phone; which had chirped to remind her that she had received a text message. “Who’s texting you?”

She shrugged, smiling lightly. “Oh, just a friend from the band life,” even though AJ and Lexy had known each other since they were in diapers, there were always some things that AJ kept to herself. And it wasn’t because AJ didn’t want to include her best friend; it was more or so to shield her from it. Lexy had a great life going for her; she had a husband that would support her financially and mentally. If AJ brought Lexy into her other world, Lexy would never want to leave.

Twirling her black straw in her bright pink drink, she raised a brow towards her brunette friend. Lexy could read AJ like a book. “A friend, hm?” A smirk graved her dark plum colored lips, bringing the cocktail towards her mouth, she breathed out, “If you say so.”

AJ gave an open laugh, “I’m serious, he’s just a friend. I promise.”

“Yeah, okay.” Lexy commented, holding out her hand, “Let’s see what your friend wants.”

AJ was stuck, she knew that if she handed Lexy her phone, it would be game over. Lexy would scroll through their conversations and conclude that the two of them were either talking or having a lot of intense flirting. But, what Lexy didn’t know was, was that’s how John was as a person. If she knew him, she’d understand their flirtatious interactions. Granted, AJ would admit that the two of them went a little further over the line than he did with most but it was just innocent. John was an amazing guy with a great personality who knew how to keep tours fun. “Just take my word for it, Lex.”

Her blue eyes glimmered with amusement as she leaned back in her booth, flagging down the server, she ordered another drink. Crossing her arms against her chest, she smirked. “Explain this friend.”

She narrowed her eyes, “How about you explain to me why you ordered another drink.”

Lexy’s mood changed, frowning. “You and I both know it’s not working so why the hell not?”

“Lex,” AJ started, her heart hurting for her best friend. She thought back all those years ago when they were just kids and Lexy had go through a partial hysterectomy. It was a scary time for the both of them, neither of them truly understanding why the situation was so serious. All they heard was the icky C word and all hell broke loose, nothing mattering other than Lexy having cancer. It wasn’t until after the surgery did the two girls start to mop up their blubbering tears and move on with their lives. And then the end of high school rolled around, Lexy meeting the man of her dreams did it remind her of her realization of the extremely difficult road of trying to conceive a child.. “The doctors told you the numbers, they’re still higher in the percentage ratio.”

“I can’t keep dishing out fifteen thousand dollars, Ashlyn. I don’t want to talk about it anymore.” Shaking her head, she inhaled deeply, forcing herself to not let the tears fall from her glassy eyes. Lexy narrowed her eyes slightly, pointing towards AJ’s phone, “Tell me about your friend, what’s his name and why is he wanting you to visit?”

AJ winced, “You saw that?” Smirking once Lexy nodded with an devilish grin. She groaned, looking up towards the ceiling while she blew all of her air outwards. “His name is John and I don’t know why he wants me to visit. I haven’t spoken to him in months, that’s how it goes. We’re just friends, Lexy. I’d tell you if I had a boyfriend-“

“-would you tell me if you had a fuck buddy?”

“John and I are definitely not fuck buddies, I can assure you that much.”

“But you guys have…..” Lexy smirked as her friend’s cheeks reddened.

AJ shook her head, covering her eyes as she tried to find the words and strength to keep her face from selling her out on something that didn’t happen. Running her hand over her head and through her hair, she pressed her lips. “No, we haven’t had sex but we have made out-“ AJ held up her finger to stop Lexy from interrupting, “-we were drunk on the bus and decided to play truth or dare. If it makes the situation any less juicy, I was dared to make out with everyone playing.”

“That makes it even more juicy!” Lexy whistled, smirking and shaking her head. Out of the two of them, Lexy was always the wild child while AJ was just there for the ride. Now, AJ could get crazy but it was a rare moment to ever catch her in and since she joined Aimless, it seemed like the wild child was visiting more often. “Who was all there? You little hussy.”

Covering her face, she mumbled, “John, two of his band mates; Kennedy and Jared, Ian, Shiloh, and Nina.”

“You didn’t?” Lexy asked with wide eyes, “Nina?”

“Yeah, made for awkward confrontations the next morning because we all remembered what went down.” Shaking her head at herself, it had been a fun night otherwise and although AJ would never admit it; it felt kind of exhilarating to be a little promiscuous for a little bit. Grabbing her phone, she decided to give into her curiosity.



“Is the kid at least cute?”

AJ laughed, “I mean I guess, kind of, yes.” Opening up her Instagram, she scrolled through some of her pictures. She found one of them standing side by side at an amusement park wearing nothing but bathing suits and dark shades.

“Damn, motherfucker is tall.” Lexy blurted, grabbing her phone to take a closer inspection of this so called John. She marveled at his tattoos, sighing, “Oh yeah, he’s a looker.” Handing the phone back to her, “So, that’s the only time you guys ever got into each other’s personal bubble?”



She laughed, “Yes, Lex. The only time we’ve ever invaded each other’s bubbles.”



“You wouldn’t lie to me, would you?”

“I promise.” AJ placed a hand on her heart, “Everything else is just innocent flirting, no game to back up our words.”



“So, what does John want?”

“He wants me to be in their music video?” AJ made a face, confused why there were making another one. She could have sworn that they already had two for their album and John had just recently made one for his song Sour Grapes. However, they were relentless in always trying to pleasure their fans and AJ loved that. A lot of bands she had toured with were so selfish and acted as if they adored their fans but talked trash about them. Granted, she knew how hard it was to stay humble in the music industry but she was a firm believer in their fans and would for as long as she could, stay out an hour or two to meet and hear their stories about how they’ve changed their lives.

“I’m not surprised, hot stuff.” Lexy winked, laughing the expression response.