Long Live Us

*Alex pov*

It was Thursday, the day before school was ending for Christmas and the day of All Time Low’s first performance as a group. The bell signalling the end of lunch had just gone, and Alex and Jack were walking to the music room to set up before the lesson started. The shorter of the two was ridiculously nervous, and was slowly beginning to panic as he thought about singing in front of the class. It would be fine if he’d been here for years, and knew everyone, but he didn’t. He’d only been living in the country for a few months, and he was certain there were people in the class that he hadn’t talked too and didn’t even know their names. Yet they would be in that room, sitting and judging him and his singing ability like the rest of the class. He wasn’t sure he was ready for it, actually he was certain, but he felt a massive need to impress the dark haired boy walking next to him. Alex would put his all into this performance for Jack, not wanting to hold him or Zack and Rian back from achieving their dream. Yes, it was Alex’s dream too, but he would always consider his closest friends as more important than him. By the time they reached the classroom, Jack was bouncing along happily, excitement making his eyes glow. Watching him being so happy made Alex chuckle to himself, causing Jack too look over to him too see what was funny.
“You better not be laughing at me!” he exclaimed, pouting and poking Alex’s arm.
“I would never do such a thing!” Alex replied in a mocking tone, gasping and pretending to be offended. Jack just rolled his eyes and shoved him gently, before leading him into the classroom. The room had been decorated last week, and tinsel lined the boards on the walls and there was a small Christmas tree on Miss Jackson’s desk at the front. It was a nice touch – the brunette liked it when teachers made an effort to do up their rooms before the holidays, even if it did feel premature. Alex followed Jack to the back of the classroom, where Rian was setting up the drum kit.
“Where’s Zack?” the lanky boy asked as he picked up the two guitars resting on the wall, handing the right one to Alex.
“Here!” a familiar voice sounded from behind the door that led into the recording studio that backed onto the room. A moment later, Zack appeared with his bass guitar around his neck and Rian’s drumsticks in his hand. The drummer thanked him and took the sticks off him, setting them down on the stool behind the drums, smiling happily. Jack quickly tuned his guitar, then Alex tuned his – thankful they had decided Alex should do a guitar part as well, not just Jack. The boy felt more confident with his guitar near him, and confidence was exactly what he needed right now. The bell rang, making Alex jump slightly, which warned them that registration was finished and lesson five was just about to start.
‘This is it...’ Alex told himself, taking a deep breath. He felt a long arm snake around his waist, and he instantly knew it was Jack, so leaned against his tall figure.
“You okay?” The tall boy murmured, bringing his head down so it rested closer to Alex’s. The shorter boy nodded, thankful that Jack was there. They stayed in that position for a few moments, murmuring quietly too each other to draw confidence from one another. Alex still found it strange how much a trusted and adored Jack, considering they hadn’t known each other that long. Not many people had had such a massive impact on the brown haired boys’ life, but Jack had. The tall, dark and handsome boy had greeted him awkwardly on the first day, and since then something in both their lives had shifted. Smiling at the recognition that Jack was in his life, standing next to him with his arm around him, Alex pulled away slightly too look at him directly. The tall boys’ eyes were round and glowing, a small smile lingering on his lips.
“Thank you.” Alex murmured, smiling as well. Jack frowned slightly, probably confused, but they separated to get the band ready as the first members of the class entered the room. The boy scuttled round to stand next to Rian, who was leant against the wall, offering a grin as he approached. The four boys stood together, nodding at the class as they came in, some of them with confused looks on their faces – obviously having no idea that there was going to be a performance today. Alex chuckled at hearing a few “oooo who’s the hot muscle-y dude?” coo’s from the girls in the class, which made Zack blush slightly and try to hide his face. From behind Zack, Jack swiftly removed his blazer and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, showing off his own arms, which made Alex weak at the knees – never mind the girls! He did the same, knowing it would be more comfortable, before slinging his guitar over his shoulder. Miss Jackson walked in a moment later, a video camera in her hand. She quickly walked up to the front of the room to her desk.
“Right guys, as you have guessed we are having a performance today. So everyone sit looking at them, and enjoy! Boys I’ll record this so its evidence if we want to use it for your coursework or anything else for that matter. When I’m set up, go for it!” There was the noise of shuffling chairs and everyone turned around, and suddenly Alex felt like all eyes were on him. He froze, once again thinking he wasn’t ready to sing in front of a group of people. It would be the first time he has, and he was freaked out. Taking deep breathes; he calmed himself down, looking at Jack for comfort. The dark haired boy was staring back, worry filling his dark eyes, but he grinned at Alex, the worry fading when he giggled in return. This was it, they were doing it.

“Right hey guys! We’re All Time Low. Alex, Jack, Rian and Zack!” he introduced them, pointing at each boy when he said their name. Jack was grinning broadly; his hair flopped over his face. Zack looked embarrassed, not liking all the attention he was getting due to being a stranger. Rian was also grinning happily, twiddling his drum sticks in one hand.
“We’re going to cover Umbrella by Rihanna, so enjoy!” Alex heard an ‘ooo that’s one of my favourite song!’ from Cass, making him chuckle. Jack winked at Rian, obviously hearing what she said as well, making the drummer roll his eyes before counting in. Alex took one deep breath in, before turning around and facing the class, making sure his eyes locked with Tay’s. The brunette girl was bouncing on her seat excitedly, clapping her hands in glee, with Jenna doing pretty much the same next to her, and Cassadee on the other side of the blonde. Looking at the trio made the boy smile, as he started the singing. He let his eyelids fall shut as he sang the first verse, concentrating on putting his fingers in the right place on the guitar strings as well as hitting the right notes. He loved the words to the chorus; they always made him think of somebody important. And right now, that person was Jack. When the words poured out of his mouth, his twisted his head slightly too look at the raven haired boy. Once he’d caught the boys attention, his head turned to face the singer, and they kept their eyes locked as Alex sang.
‘When the sun shines, we'll shine together, told you I'd be here forever, said I'll always be a friend, took an oath I'ma stick it out 'til the end.’
A shy smile crept onto Alex’s face as Jack mouthed the words back. Butterflies erupted in the pit of his stomach as he once again thought about anything happening between himself and the tall boy. There was hope, definitely. He was willing to wait for Jack, and sometimes felt bad – almost guilty – at the thought that the boy was going through confused emotions over him. Guilty, but honored. Jack winked at him, before turning his head back around and gently nodding it to the beat of the song as Alex continued singing. Letting his eyes skim over the class, he suddenly felt nervous again. What if they weren’t enjoying it or didn’t like them? Trying to keep his voice steady, he looked for any sign of dislike or disinterest. However, there was none to be found. Every single member of the class was smiling, their eyes bright. Multiple people were singing along quietly, just enjoying the music.
‘Wow.’ Was all that could process in Alex’s mind. These people were enjoying it! The feeling that filled his heart spread throughout his body and made him feel on top of the world. In that moment, he silently promised himself and the three boys around him that they would do this. That as a band, they would make it in the music industry, because he already knew that nothing would ever compare to this feeling of singing to people, and watching them enjoy it. The song came to an end, and the class erupted into cheering as Zack strummed the last chord of the song. Alex turned around, grinning at his band mates, before stumbling as Jack pounced on him.
“You’re fucking incredible, that was fucking incredible, music is fucking incredible, can we do it again?!” he said excitedly into Alex’s ear. The brunette chuckled, knowing they all felt the same, but Jack’s hyperness would blow everything else out of the water.
“I hope so!” he replied happily, just grinning ear to ear and Rian and Zack hugged him as well. Jack’s legs wrapped around Alex’s waist, ensuring that nobody came between the two of them, which made Alex’s smile even bigger. In that moment the four boys came together as one. A true band of brothers.

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“Jack bloody hell hurry up!” Alex groaned, leaning on the door frame. School had finished a few hours earlier, and the pair were going to a party at Matt’s house.
“Calm down you tit he only lives round the corner.” The younger boy replied, running the straightners through his hair once more. Alex just rolled his eyes; he’d been ready for half an hour already. He wondered how drunk people would be getting tonight, and remembering the last time Jack was drunk, Alex wondered whether he should hold back. But as he looked up at the boy who was still doing his hair, he decided he wouldn’t. Jack could look after himself.
“Are the girls going tonight?” Alex queried, wanting to know who would be there. If it was going to be just a room of strangers then he’d be pretty pissed off about waiting so long to stand in a room in awkward silence.
“Tay, Cass and Hayley are going, Jenna said she had to check.”
“What about the rest of the guys?”
“Rian’s not, Josh might unless Abi’s here... Dan, Max and Chris will probably come for some of it.” Jack replied, finally finishing his hair. Alex nodded, glad that at least Tay would be there.
“You never told me what happened between you and Matt, like why Rian doesn’t like him.” Alex stated, remembering the drummer’s expression whenever the other boy was brought up.
“Hmm, it’s a long story..” Jack muttered, raising the can of hairspray in his hand above his head and spraying. After a good few minutes, he stopped spraying, leaving Alex coughing slightly.
“Fucking hell you use a lot of hair spray!” he spluttered between coughs and gasps for air. He was still curious about the past events between Jack and Matt, but figured they could be left for today, and it looked like Jack wasn’t very willing to spill the beans anyway.
“Alex?” The brunette looked up to see the tall boy looking at him, his eyes looking nervous yet slightly curious. Alex nodded, motioning for him to continue. “If I, like, tried to get with a girl tonight would you be pissed?” Taken aback, Alex just stared back for a few moments. He had no idea how to respond, he certainly didn’t expect anything like this to ask. He wouldn’t be pissed, as such, but he would be upset and ridiculously jealous, but then that wasn’t any reason for Jack not to do anything. If he said he was fine with it, he would have to live with the knowledge that the boy he liked was sucking the face off of some slut, but if he said he was pissed, that would probably annoy the heck out of Jack. This would end up in an argument at some point, that much was obvious already. Maybe not tonight, but definitely at some point along the line.
“You can do what you want Jack, I can’t stop you.” Alex admitted honestly, knowing that that was true and both boys knew it.
“So you’d be pissed.” He stated, walking over to his bedside table and rummaging around in the drawer quickly.
“I wouldn’t be annoyed or anything... I’d probably just be jealous.” Chuckling, Alex ran his hand though his hair to hide his face, as he felt it heating up.
“Oh you cutie!” Jack chuckled from the other side of the room, standing back up holding a small bottle of Jack Daniels. “But no.. I, I think I’m.. Done with girls.. As such... I’m just super horny.” Alex rolled his eyes, but accepted that. It wasn’t his place to say what the boy could and couldn’t do, so we wouldn’t.
“Ready?” Jack asked, walking to the door and putting his phone into the pocket of his jeans.
“I’ve been ready for ages you dick.” Alex retorted, letting Jack lead him out of the house and down the road towards Matt’s house.

A few hours later, a pretty drunk Alex was stumbling through Matt’s house following Tay to get more drinks. Jack had vanished almost instantly, so Alex assumed he was with some girl somewhere. As expected, the firery emotion of jealousy filled his body at the thought, making his blood boil. They reached the kitchen, and Tay poured a generous amount of some weird cheap wine into each plastic cup. Alex downed the cup the instant she moved the bottle away, desperate to forget Jack.
“Calm down!” Tay slurred, taking a small sip out of her own drink. She then walked off, and Alex couldn’t be bothered to follow her, so he filled up his cup once more. As he brought it to his lips, a voice sounded behind him. He turned around, and his eyes met a face that he didn’t recognise.
“Hey I’m Morgan, fancy going outside for a bit?” The boy offered, smiling. Alex shrugged, accepting his offer, and followed the boy out the door. The pair sat by the wall of the front of the house, the music still audible. When they were in the better light of the garden lights, Alex took a proper look at the boy. He had fluffy black hair, a long fringe across his forehead. His skin was tanned, and he had a lip piercing, and light brown eyes. Alex had to admit he was quite cute. “So, you never introduced yourself.” Morgan said, taking a sip of his own drink and watching Alex intently.
“Alex.” He introduced with a smile. “How do you know Matt?”
“Oh, we met years ago. Friend of a friend.” They talked for a while, with Morgan getting them more drinks when they both finished theirs. Alex was sure at least an hour passed, with people walking in and out of the door as the two boys sat there. Morgan seemed like a really decent guy, and reminded Alex of Oli a little bit. They liked the same music, and wanted the same piercings and tattoo types and things like that. Maybe that was why Alex clicked so well with this boy, because he reminded him of his old friend.
“You’re supeeeer cute, you know that rrriight?” Morgan said, his words blending together in places, but Alex was in no state to realise.
“Are... Are y-y-you trynaaaa hit o-on meee?” he grinned cheekily over to the dark haired boy, who had a small smile on his own lips.
“Maybeeeee..” he murmured. It was obvious he was testing the waters, seeing where this would go just for tonight, checking to see if the boy would be fine with him kissing him. It was made more obvious when he leant in slightly, keeping his eyes locked with Alex’s. The brunette giggled, slightly nervous, flattered and drunk, breaking the eye contact to take another sip of his drink. Nothing was making sense in his mind, and he was almost certain this would all be a blur in the morning. When he turned to face Morgan again, he still looked hopeful. Something clicked in Alex’s head, and he suddenly wanted the boy. Leaning in eagerly, he pressed his lips to Morgan’s. The boy instantly kissed back, his lip ring creating a different type of friction between their lips. Alex hummed quietly, bringing his hand to the back of Morgan’s head and knotting his fingers in the soft hair. Before it got too heated, the boy retracted to catch his breath. After they each took another swing of their drink, the kiss re-initiated, much more forcefully and greedily now. Morgan’s hands made their way to Alex’s hips, pulling the brown haired boy closer to him. Smiling into the kiss, Alex opened his mouth slightly, inviting the other boy in – an invitation that was quickly accepted. Alex let the other boy take control, enjoying the sensation of their tongues dancing together. It had been a while since anyone had shown a true, real, straight out interest in Alex, and he was savoring every second of the kiss. Morgan moaned when Alex withdrew slightly, pulling gently on his lip ring and opening his eyes so the two were staring at each other. The dark haired boy smirked, and pushed Alex’s fringe away from his eyes, their faces remaining only centimeters apart. As Alex went to close the distance once more, he was interrupted by a voice. Looking up, he saw Jack standing at the door. His eyes were wide, and Alex was too drunk to work out what emotion filled them. He was standing rigid, coat on, ready to go. The boys met gazes for a second, guilt washing over Alex slightly. Jack took a breath, steadying his voice.
“Er, Alex we’re going...”

Notes

so yeah sorry this update took so long i've been super busy :/
pweaseeee comment and stuff, means so much to me! Tell me what you think (:
enjoy xoxoxo