Love on the Brain

Jade jumped at the sound of familiar voices, and it almost felt as though she just had a mini heart attack, as she saw the guys that had gathered inside Brian’s kitchen.

“Happy birthday, fucker!” Jimmy was the first to step forward, not hiding his excitement as he all but swept her up in his arms and started spinning her around.

“Ey! Careful with the birthday girl, dude!” Matt told his friend, before went to wish her happy birthday and hug her.

“Happy birthday, Jade!” his dimples popped out on his face as Matt went to hug the rather petite girl.

“Thank you so much! Both of you,” she stated, still recovering from the shock.

“Happy birthday!” both Matt and Jason Berry stepped forward, crushing the girl in another bonecrushing hug, before they both pecked her cheeks.

“You guys are so sweet!” Jade exhaled, still recovering from the surprise.

“Happy birthday,” Johnny Seward smile brightly at the girl, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into her embrace, before Zacky was the next to hug her.

Jade couldn’t keep the smile off her face, meanwhile Valary stepped forward and pulled her friend into the tightest hug she had ever received.

“Happy fucking birthday, Jade!” the raven-haired girl beamed happily, rocking the brunette from one side to the other.

“I can’t believe you guys planned this,” Jade muffled, her chest breathing heavily as she glanced over her shoulder and looked at Brian.

“Oh, please. He didn’t plan this,” a very familiar voice spoke, earning her attention instantly as Jade looked at her cousin.

“Olivia? Is this a dream?” the brunette couldn’t help her comment, as the others started laughing.

“If this doesn’t prove how much I love you then I don’t know what will!” she admitted.

Jade giggled, agreeing to her statement, before her eyes landed on a second person, who she had also seen a lot of times in her life.

It was Michelle.

“Michelle? Oh my God,” Jade’s eyes widened. The blonde hadn’t spoken to her all week, and now she was standing in the middle of Brian’s kitchen, surrounded by their friends who were ready to celebrate Jade’s birthday.

“Let’s not make this awkward. Hug me for Christ’s sake!” Michelle broke off the silence that instantly fell over the two of them, taking Jade by surprise as she hugged the brunette, who soon also hugged her friend back.

After a while, Johnny had put on music, lightening up the entire house, as everyone got their alcohol from the fridge and got ready for another crazy night.

Jade soon found herself alone with Michelle, ready to finally get rid of the guilt that had haunted her all week.

“Michelle, I’m so incredibly sorry for what happened! I know I should’ve told you from the very beginning, but I was so terrified and I didn’t want to make a scene and-”

The brunette was soon cut off by Michelle herself.

“Honey, please don’t feel bad. I was really pissed when I first found out, but that was just because I was so surprised. I had no clue you felt that way towards him, and after Val managed to shove some sense into me, I realized that the only reason why you didn’t tell me was because you cared,”

Relief fell over Jade by her words. A sigh fell from her lips as she pulled the blonde unto her chest and hugged her for quite some time.

“I owe you so much!” she told Michelle, not wanting to let go, meanwhile the blonde girl laughed rather nervously.

“Actually,” she started. “You don’t, because I did something stupid when I was mad at you,” she confessed, chewing on her bottom lip, meanwhile Jade looked at her friend.

“What do you mean?”

“I told Olivia about you and Brian. I honestly thought she knew, but when I realized that she didn’t, I just told her without thinking clearly,” Michelle admitted.

Oh my God.

“Oh,” Jade blurted, not completely sure how to react properly. “How did she take it?” she asked, curious about how the two of them had started talking.

“She said something about not knowing enough mean words to describe how she felt about the two of you,” Michelle announced, trying to recall her exact words. “But now I honestly think she doesn’t mind. She’s seen how much Brian cares about you,” she stated.

Jade felt another wave of relief roll over her. She couldn’t believe how many things that had happened over such a short amount of time.

“Jade!” Jimmy yelled at her, both of his hands holding unto beers, as he stumbled towards her. “You owe me one dance!” he told her.

“Oh, is that so?” she chuckled, cocking her eyebrows at the guy who already looked as though he had had a lot.

“Yup! I’ll give you five!” he announced, before he returned to Val, who was already loosening up in the middle of Brian’s living room.

“So, we’re friends again?” Jade turned back to Michelle, who had managed to grab a drink for herself.

“Best friends,” Michelle corrected her, a bright smile on her lips. “And I support you and Brian. He’s a great guy and you’re an even better girl,” she announced.

“I love you, Michelle DiBenedetto!” Jade told her, wrapping her arm around her shoulders. “And now I have to dance with Jimmy before he kills me,” she muffled, as Michelle giggled.

“Have fun, sweetie,” Michelle chuckled, watching as her friend took off with Jimmy towards the dance floor, leaving her all by herself, as she took a swig from her drink.

“I’m really proud of you, sis,” Val announced, wrapping her arm around Michelle’s shoulders. “Arranging all of this for Jade is really awesome of you,” her sister went on, kissing her twin’s cheek.

“She deserves it,” Michelle mumbled. “Jade’s a great person,” she said.

“Come on! Let’s show those fuckers how you do it!” Valary said, pulling her sister into the same direction as Jade had just disappeared into, as The Safety Dance came on.

“We can dance if we want to! We can leave your friends behind. ‘Cause your friends don’t dance and if they don’t dance, well, they’re no friends of mine!” Jimmy sang on top of his lungs on the dance floor, spinning Jade around, as the birthday girl couldn’t help but laugh hysterically at his shrieking vocals.

“You’re awfully good at this!” the brunette told the drummer, who kept dancing with a bottle of cheap champagne in his hand.

“I know! I’m the best!” Jimmy responded, his baby blue eyes glowing, meanwhile he spun her around again. “I have a confession!” he told her.

“Oh, really?” Jade’s eyebrows climbed high on her forehead.

“Your cousin is really good looking,” she noticed how his entire face turned red.

“Is that your confession?” she giggled, noticing that he was still scarlet in his face.

“You don’t get to laugh!” Jimmy shrieked, waving his slender finger at her. “I’ll never confess anything to you again!” he added.

Jade couldn’t prevent the laughter from leaving her lips, as the two of them soon left the dance floor, allowing the twins to take it from there. She soon sat down in the couch, glancing over at Jimmy who looked like a little child who had just been denied candy.

“Do you like her?” she asked, placing her hand on top of his shoulder.

“Maybe,” Jimmy said, acting arrogant as he stuck his nose up in the air and avoided her look.

“Come on. You can tell me,” Jade insisted, chuckling again.

“What is he trying to hide now?” Zacky asked, as he had noticed the two of them and especially how Jimmy was trying to act out.

“Does Jimmy have a little crush on my cousin?” she asked the raven-haired boy, who instantly busted out laughing.

“I believe a ‘little crush’ would be an understatement,” Jason grinned boyishly, as his brother companied him.

“Oh yeah. More like head over heels, I’d say,” Matt joined, both of the brothers howling with laughter, meanwhile Jimmy looked as red as a tomato.

“Fuck off you guys!” Jimmy groaned.

Jade chuckled again. He looked so adorable when he was blushing, and it appeared even more adorable when she now knew why he was blushing so insanely much.

“I think it’s really sweet,” she told him, patting his back with her small hand. “You should talk to her once,” she encouraged, even though she had no idea how Olivia would react to that.

“I don’t think she knows he exits,” Matt said, watching as his brother took a swig from his dark beer.

“Oh, definitely not,” Zacky confirmed. “And if she does, I assume she doesn’t have the best impression of him,” he added, a snigger rolling out of his lips.

“Stop it you guys! I know for a fact that Oli knows who he is,” Jade told them, taking them by surprise, as well as Jimmy.

“S-She knows?” Jimmy stuttered, his face making it look as though he had recently seen a ghost.

Jade nodded. “Yeah,” she confirmed.

“Well, maybe you have a shot,” Jason shrugged.

“I’ll make a bet out of this one!” Matt promised his brother, just before Jade spotted her cousin, who she hadn’t seen since she arrived.

“Oli!” Jade yelled, soon earning the attention from the dark-haired girl who turned around.

“And here I was thinking that I wouldn’t get the chance to talk to you at all,” Olivia giggled, lacing her arm around her cousin’s shoulders.

“Look, we have a lot to talk about,” Jade announced. “And I hope you haven’t banned me from your life,” she added.

Olivia started giggling, instantly knowing what her cousin was referring to.

“I’m a little insulted you got to fight over this with Michelle, because that’s my place!” the dark-haired girl told her. “And even though I’m really against you being together with a guy who uses fedora, I suppose I have to accept it eventually,” she added.

The smile on Jade’s lips grew bigger at her words. She knew how difficult it was for someone like Olivia to admit these things, and hearing them now on her birthday only made it even better.

“So, you’re not mad?” she asked, watching as Olivia’s lips embraced the straw in her cider.

“Just disappointed,” she confessed. “But who knows? Maybe you can change him into a person I wouldn’t be ashamed to be around?” Olivia said, sounding more optimistic than ever.

Jade only rolled her eyes at her comment. “Who knows?” she shrugged, avoiding the clever smirk that twisted Olivia’s pinkish lips.

The brunette could soon feel a pair of arms linking around her waist, Brian’s bare skin touching the fabric from her satin jumpsuit, as she was pulled into his embrace.

“Well, hello,” he smirked, burying his lips into the crook of her neck and inhaling the sweet scent of her.

“Brian!” she whimpered, panic gripping her entire chest, as she spun around. “They’re not supposed to know,” she reminded him of, her voice appearing in a rather stressed whisper.

“Oh, honey. We know, trust me,” Matt Sanders chuckled, as the brunette spun around and noticed the attention she had just gained from the group.

“You do?” she asked, looking puzzled.

“Did you really think you could keep that secret?” Zacky sniggered, enjoying the confusion that all but rolled over her face.

“How do you know?” Jade muffled, glancing over at Brian, who only chuckled back. “Did you tell them?” she asked him.

“I’m almost offended, Jade. We wouldn’t have to ask to know where his dick was pointing,” Jimmy told the brunette.

“Of course we would find out. Brian’s not exactly good at keeping secrets,” Johnny grinned.

“B-But….” she stuttered. “When did you find out?” Jade asked.

“Before Val and Michelle’s party,” Matt told her.

“What? No way?” the brunette looked almost petrified, as she thought the two of them had done a great job hiding it from the others.

“We’ve known Syn a long time. He can’t hide that shit from us,” Jason told her.

“I’m sorry, babe,” Jimmy sniggered.

“I thought we did a great job,” she muffled under her breath, meanwhile Brian laced their fingers together.

“Oh, but you did. We’re just better,” Zacky chuckled.

“Don’t look so sad, angel,” Brian muttered, placing his index finger under her chin and lifting her head until her dark orbs met his.

Their friends soon went back to what they had been doing earlier, and Olivia was now even talking to Michelle, as she realized that Brian Haner was holding her cousin as hostage for a moment.

“So,” Jade started, the realization hitting her, meanwhile a smile tugged at the corners of her lips. “We don’t have to hide anymore?” she asked hopefully, wrapping her arms around his neck.

“Nope,” Brian smirked, kissing the tip of her nose, before he brought her lips against his in a rather tenderly and passionate kiss.

Jade could feel how his hands travelled down her butt, squeezing it firmly, meanwhile his tongue traced her bottom lip and went all inside her mouth. She was standing on her toes, feeling his hands that held unto the fabric of her article, as their lips kept moving together rather passionately.

If someone told her by the beginning of the semester that she would spend her birthday making out with a wannabe-rockstar like Brian Haner, she would probably tell them that was the worst joke she’d ever heard. Now, however, she was more than happy to be making out with Brian Haner in the middle of his living room on her eighteen birthday.

“Happy birthday, Jade,” Brian smiled after he had pulled away in order to catch his breath that was stuck in his throat.

“Thank you so much, Bri. You guys have made it the best one,” she told him, her lips smiling brightly.