Long Live Us

*Alex POV*

The Green Day concert had been epic. Alex's head was buzzing with the sheer joy of being there. He loved seeing the band live, everything about it just made him feel alive. Him and Jack had managed to get three rows away from the barrier, which just made everything that much better. The dark haired boy hadn't left his side the entire time, and he knew he was looking out for him, which made the older boy smile. He couldn't ask for anyone better to have entered his life.
"Right guys so we only have two songs left." Billie Joe shouted from the stage, one hand wrapped around the microphone, causing a "booo" to erupt from the crowd. He chuckled before continuing.
"I wanted to tell you guys a little story from earlier, if that's okay."
Everyone cheered.
"So I met a really awesome couple earlier. And they got me thinking. I don't think I've ever laid eyes on two people that fitted so well together, or looked so happy together. And you know why they got me thinking?"
He paused, and the crowd remained silent, everyone keen to know where the story was going.
"They got me thinking because they were both male."
Billie Joe stated, looking out of the crowd as they began murmuring uncertainly. Alex looked at Jack and frowned, worry coursing through his body. His idol wasn't against gay people, was he? Jack's eyebrows were pushed together as well, his eyes slightly narrowed, darkened with doubt and worry.
'Oh god.' Alex said to himself, running one of his hands through his sweaty brown hair as they all waited for the singer to continue.
"And it's one of those iffy topics isn't it? I've always been fifty fifty. Until today. Those two boys represented all I want to find in another person in my own life. They were just, perfect for each other. And that's what everyone should be entitled to have. Whether they be male, female, both, whatever. It shouldn't matter. Love is for everyone."
He finished defiantly, throwing a kiss out to the crowd. Alex now had a grin plastered to his face, as did Jack, and their interlinked hands were squeezed together as their happiness overflowed. It was almost like he was approving of them, and that feeling made the brunette ecstatic.
"So, this next song goes out too one of those boys who opened my eyes today. I hope you're still here and haven't missed it. SHOUT OUT TO THOSE TWO. This ones called When I Come Around."
As the first note sounded, Alex realised Bille Joe had been talking about them. His hands slapped over his mouth in shock and disbelief, and Jack also had a facial expression of amazement. They looked at each other, grins spreading across their faces as they silently acknowledged what just happened. Essentially, their fucking hero just approved their relationship.
"Holy shit." Alex murmured, the dark haired boy next to him nodding in agreement.
"Quick, on my shoulders." He then ordered, crouching down. The brunette eagerly clambered on, and held on to his shoulders as the lanky boy stood up. Once they were both settled, Alex threw his arms up in the air and let out the loudest cheer he could, admiring the view from his height advantage. Jack began swaying to the beat of the music, his hands keeping a firm grip on Alex's shin. When the chorus started, the brunette sand at the top of his lungs, getting lost in the moment.
"No time to search the world around, Cause you know where I'll be found, When I come around." Flinging his hands into the air, he grinned when Billie Joe spotted him. The singer turned around and pointed at him, a large smile on his face as well.
'Today was fucking awesome!' Was all the brunette could think as the song ended, Jack put him down and Green Day finished the set. Just fucking awesome.

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Monday had rolled around again, sending both Alex and Jack into a wallowing pit of post concert depression. They were now sat in music, half attempting to try and put some band work together, but it wasn't really happening. Rian would click a few notes, then just sigh and open the YouTube tab and try and find a funny video to watch. Alex and Jack were sat next to him, the brunette fiddling with a loose piece of thread on Jack's trousers near his knee. The whole class seemed to be in a dull, quiet mood, and the room was only filled with murmuring every now and then, or a laugh here and there.
Alex smiled, deciding to recall the events of the weekend. Spending every second with Jack was perfection anyway, and then with Green Day it was just a weekend that would never be topped. In fact, he was certain it would take a lot to replace that as his number one weekend.
The brunette then wondered about them coming out at school. They had agreed not too, yet, and Alex knew how much of a big deal it would be for Jack. And neither of them knew how people would react. Alex knew he would feel guilty if people started picking on the dark haired boy over it. Obviously he would blame himself, technically it would be his fault. So as much as he waned to tell everyone, he was happy to keep it on the down low for now, for Jack.
Alex was brought away from his day dream by the lanky boy next to him stretching, and letting out a loud yawn as he did. When he opened his eyes, he caught Alex watching him and smiled. The brunette blushed, feeling embarrassed, but Jack just brought his hand to Alex's cheek and stroked it gently, before dropping his hand again and shifting so he was comfy again. The older boy was left with his cheek tingling, desperately wishing he could cuddle up to the dark haired boy.
Sighing, he leaned back in his chair again, only to turn around when he heard the door open. Everyone in the room turned so they could see who entered, and it was Matt. The dark haired boy stuck his head round the door, then when his eyes landed on Miss Jackson he entered and waltzed up to her.
"Eurgh." Alex heard Rian say, the short haired boy quickly losing interest and turning back around and refocusing his attention on the screen.
"Ri calm down he hasn't done anything." Jack said, chuckling slightly as he too turned back around.
"He fucking walks around like he owns the place. I want to smash his nut in." Rian replied, his voice almost a growl, anger flowing off of him.
'This must be to do with whatever happened...' Alex thought, watching intently as Jack just rolled his eyes. It seemed that this was a recurring thing; arguing about Matt. That would explain why Jack didn't bother saying anything back. Although Alex felt like he needed to know. It was obviously important, for Rian to hold this much of a grudge. So what had the boy done? And was it too Jack or Rian?
The sound of the door opening and closing again signalled Matts departure, and Alex could see the tension leave the short haired boys shoulder. Jack looked slightly uncomfortable, and tension in the air was apparent. Alex shifted awkwardly, uncertain of what to do, or how to handle the situation. He didn't have a clue what the issue was, so there was nothing he could do. His gaze travelled to Jack, who was running one of his hands over a small area of his back, by his hip, his gaze dark and staring straight ahead. The dark haired boy looked like he wanted to talk, but nothing seemed to come out. Rian seemed to noticed this as well, and shot him a death glare as he spoke for him.
"Don't try and pull out a bullshit excuse." He told him sternly, staring Jack down before turning back to the computer once more. The lanky boy kept his head down, his eyes focused on the empty desk in front of him. His eyes were glazed over, a darkness in them that almost reminded Alex of fear. Whatever had happened, it seemed to have been serious.
Tay coming over brought Alex away from the boys, the girl wanting to know something to do with her next performance, and whether he liked it or not. That distracted him for the rest of the lesson, and he was thankful for the bell to go, hoping the rest of the day would go a lot smoother than that lesson seemed too.

The sun had decided to come out, which Alex was glad about, so the boys ended up outside on the grass during lunch break. The one downside was that the grass was with the lower years playground, but it was pretty much the only place they could go, so they did. Jack had taken his blazer off, laying it on the floor next to him and rolling up his sleeves. Rian had his blazer slung over his shoulder - as he often did - and Alex just rolled the sleeves up on his and kept it on. A few other members of the year group were enjoying the weather around them as well, groups sitting and chatting as they bathed in the warmth.
"You'll never guess what happened." Rian started, shifting slightly so he wasn't being blinded by the sun. Jack lay back and propped himself up on his elbows, shooting his friend a questioning look.
"Tell us then." Alex prompted, stretching his legs out in front of him.
"Well, I was walking down my road yesterday, and you know I told you about the weird women with that crazy ass dog?" He looked at the boys for confirmation, and they both nodded, Alex letting out a small laugh at the memory of the story.
"Yeah, well I bumped into her again, and she was all friendly and stuff. Then she dropped-"
"Hey, Jack!" Rian was interrupted by someone calling the dark haired boys name. Looking around, Alex noticed Matt approaching, and instantly he knew something was going to happen. He heard an annoyed gruff from Rian, and Jack just kept his face blank as the boy approached.
"Hey guys." Matt greeted, sitting down next to Jack. Alex smiled warmly at him, seeing as he had no reason to dislike him, whereas Rian ignored him completely.
"What's up?" Jack questioned, flicking his hair out of his eyes as he waited for an answer.
"I have news." He said excitedly, making Jack nod and look at him questioningly, silently prompting him to continue. Alex shifted so the circle was slightly wider, to accompany Matt's arrival, stretching his legs further so they lay close to Jack's.
"So you know Kerry?" The lanky boy frowned, locating the memory of said girl in his mind, before nodding.
"Yeah, she's been all flirty and crap, saying she "wants me" and all that." Matt said, making quotation marks with his hands as he said 'wants me'. He looked quite proud of himself as he spoke, Alex thought, and he quickly continued.
"She said she's in Baltimore next week, so she's gonna come down and see me. On ittt." He finished, showing Jack his phone. His brown eyes danced over the screen, before he handed it back.
"I though you said she was back with Josh?" Jack questioned.
"Maybe I don't know anymore." Matt replied with a shrug, a smug look plastered on his face. Jack let out a laugh and high fived him.
"Are you fucking joking?" The relaxed atmosphere was instantly shattered and the tension burst through as Rian finally lashed out. Matt shot the short haired boy a confused look, and Jack just averted his gaze away from the group, finding interest in the grass.
"Don't you remember, Matthew?" Rian spat, clenching his fist. Alex shifted uncomfortably, genuinely fearing the boy at the moment. A confused look remained on Matts face, a frown slowly forming on his features.
"Of course you don't. It was just another day for you, it didn't affect you really, did it?" Rian spoke evenly, holding Matt's gaze. It was quite intimidating, and the tension was crackling in the air. Alex glanced at Jack, partially for comfort, to find the dark haired boy still with his head low, looking like he wanted the ground to swallow him up.
"Is this still about...?" Matt questioned, leaning forward slightly, his eyes filling with disbelief when Rian nodded slowly.
"Dude, that was like, three years ago!" The dark haired boy said, leaning back again and dismissing Rian. Even Alex's shoulders stiffened at that. That was a bad move.
"Oh yeah, gosh, I'm so in the wrong for holding a grudge for you nearly killing my friend." Rian retorted, his voice laced with aggressive sarcasm.
Alex froze. Killing?
'Jack was nearly killed?' He suddenly felt very wary of Matt, and felt the strong need to protect Jack.
"I wasn't going to die Ri-" Jack started, talking quietly, not lifting his head.
"You were hospitalised Jack. Am I the only one who remembers?" Rian cut him off, glaring at him, before returning his stare to Matt.
"Pfft. I just hope this Josh guy does the same to you. Weird how it's alright for you to do it, isn't it?" Rian continued after a few moments of silence, and this remark was once again met with silence.
Alex sat rock still. He felt that if he moved, something would go wrong. Like, a bomb would go off. Something dramatic and devastating. Maybe this was a time bomb going off, maybe it had been building up and here was the explosion.
Matt then murmured something, Alex didn't catch it, before he ran off, heading back to the school building. Jack still refused to lift his head up, and it was now clear he was avoiding Rian's gaze.
"He knows I'm right, that's why." The short haired boy told Alex, almost as if he had been thinking out loud. The brunette nodded slowly, keeping his eyes on Jack. It definitely seemed like this all need to be resolved. Currently, it had just been swept under the carpet and ignored. But it needed to be in the open and cleaned away properly. Not hidden away. Alex just wanted to know what had actually happened. He needed to know. And he was determined to find out.

Notes

sorry for taking ages exams and shizz! lyl xoxo