The Anklebiters
Smash the Silence with the Brick of Self-Control
Trigger warning: mentions of domestic violence
"Why is the stage so empty?”
Hayley was sitting in her usual seat at the bar in the 8x10 club, imaging a tumbleweed rolling across the lonely stage set up in the front. She took note of the set of instruments located in the back as Alex looked up from where he stood behind the counter, trying to figure out the new cash register his dad bought for the club.
“Couldn’t find anyone free tonight,” Alex shrugged, pushing down on a button.
Hayley watched him fidget with the machine and become frustrated, causing her to laugh. “I think you should give up on that already.”
“I. Will. Not.” He pushed down on one of the huge keys, making the register full of cash pop out and hit his stomach. “Fuck!”
Hayley couldn’t stop her laughter at that point. “You should’ve listened to me!”
Alex rubbed his gut where the register hit him. “Shut up.”
“Back to what I was saying,” she then proceeded, “I spotted a guitar right next to the stage …”
“Hayley,” he warned.
“You should go up there and play something!”
Alex rounded the corner of the bar and took the seat next to her. “There are too many people here, and there are still more coming in.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t think it’s possible.”
She hopped off her tall chair. “I think all you need is a push.”
“Wha―?”
That was when―with all her might―Hayley started pushing Alex towards the stage. The boy was confused at how such a small girl could be so strong. With each shove, she was pushing him closer and closer to the stage. One step. One step. Stair. Stair. Stair.
Hayley pulled him behind her once they made it on the stage. She tapped the microphone and finally grabbed hold of it, not minding the confused faces of the crowd below. “Hey, guys! This guy behind me is my boyfriend and he has an amazing voice that I think you should hear! Enjoy!” She pranced off the stage, but not before whispering in his ear, “You’re gonna kill it!”
Alex just stared at the crowd for a good moment, his nerves taking over. Hayley went back to her seat at the bar and prayed he would move or do something. Finally, he made his way a little to the right and grabbed the guitar, also taking hold of a chair in the process. He sat the chair in front of the mic and adjusted the stand, plopping down on the seat. “Um―hey, everyone,” he smiled nervously while quickly tuning the guitar. “I know this is kinda weird, but―uh―yeah, I wrote this recently for a very special girl.”
He started strumming the strings, immediately humming the melody. Hayley started smiling and laughing, because she knew the exact words to this song.
“No, I won't call you baby
I won’t buy you daisies
Cause that don’t work
And I know, how to get you crazy
How to make you want me
So bad it hurts
“I wanna be good, good, good to you
But that’s not, not, not your type
So I’m gonna be bad for you
Tonight, tonight, tonight …”
He grinned to the crowd, especially at Hayley when he noticed her singing along.
“I’ll misbehave if it turns you on
No Mr. Right, if you want Mr. Wrong
I’ll tell you lies
If you don’t like the truth
I don’t wanna be bad
I just wanna be bad enough for you
Well, I just wanna be bad enough for you
Well, I just wanna be bad enough …”
Hayley giggled to herself as Alex continued playing along to the rhythm. That was until she felt a tap on her shoulder.
Her brow furrowed as she turned to the person sitting on the stool besides her, and her expression instantly morphed into a frown. She found herself becoming choked up at the face she hadn’t seen in so long, a person she surely didn’t miss. “What are you doing here, Chad?” She seethed through her teeth.
The ex-boyfriend shrugged, and Hayley noticed he had become a lot more built since the last time she saw him, which meant he got even stronger. “That your boyfriend up there?” He pointed to Alex up on stage. “Lowered your standards, Hayley? The guy looks like a weakling, if you ask me.”
“Well, no one asked you anything.” She ground her teeth together. “Now go away.”
“Aw, c’mon, Hayles,” he reached out to caress her cheek. “I know you missed me.” His hand slid down to her neck, but she smacked it away quickly.
“Screw off, Chad.” She whispered, careful for anyone’s ears.
He suddenly grabbed for her jaw, pulling her face in his direction and already crushing it between his fingers. “Listen here, bitch.” He hissed enough to spit in her face. “I’m just trying to be friendly, ya hear? What I don’t need is you acting like a fucking bitch to me. Learn how to be friendly to a person when they―”
“Hey, Chad.”
The two exes turned towards Alex, who just finished his song and hopped off the stage. Alex’s eyes were fixed on Hayley’s as Chad immediately let go of her and smiled. Hayley was rubbing her jawline.
“Why are you touching my girlfriend?”
Chad stood from his seat and started for the door. “Nothing to worry about, small fry.”
Alex suddenly grabbed his shoulder, spinning Chad back around. “No,” he muttered, “answer my question.”
Chad turned to face Alex, a wicked grin on his face as he glanced back at Hayley on her stool. “You wanna know?” He then shrugged. “It wasn’t me, if I’m being honest. She asked for it, like she always does. She just still hasn’t gotten over me yet.”
Alex looked towards Hayley, who was widening her eyes and mouthing the word, No. The boyfriend cocked an eyebrow towards the guy who he used to look up to. “I’m sorry, Chad, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave this place.”
“What’s the problem?” Chad inched closer to Alex while raising his fists. “Can’t take the truth that your girlfriend will always be a slut? You might want to finally open your eyes.”
“You son of a―”
Hayley finally stood from her seat, approaching angered boys. “Alex, calm―”
She was too late. In that second, Alex pulled his arm back and instantly hit Chad’s cheek, making his head spin to the right. Chad stumbled a little, his eyes heated, as he ran up towards Alex and tried punching him in the same spot. He missed, to Hayley’s surprise, who was failing at pulling Alex back. Alex got in another punch then, right at Chad’s nose, and before the boys could do any more damage, Mr. Gaskarth came running out of the store room from behind the bar.
“Break it up! Break it up!” He pushed them away from each other as Hayley gave one last tug at Alex, finally pulling him back. “You!” Mr. Gaskarth pointed at Chad. “Get out of my club!”
Chad put up his hands in surrender. “Have fun with her, Alex!” He pushed open the door, and before he could leave, he screamed, “SHE FUCKS LIKE A WHORE ANYWAYS!”
The club became absolutely silent, and Hayley finally noticed the crowd of people staring at them. Mr. Gaskarth glanced towards the lot of people. “You’ve seen enough!” The crowd dispersed a little and went back to talking amongst themselves.
“Hey, dad,” Alex muttered, “I’m gonna take Hayley home, okay?”
Mr. Gaskarth nodded. “I’ll take over for you.”
---
The ride home was eerily silent as Hayley hugged her knees to her chest and stared out the window. Alex struggled with what to say to her, but it always ended up with his conscious telling him how much of a fool he sounded. He decided to just speak his mind, which ended up with him―
“I’m sorry.” He choked out. “I shouldn’t have―”
“It’s okay.” She sighed. “I’m used to it with him.”
He glanced in her direction. “You shouldn’t be used to that.” He shook his head. “Now I understand why you didn’t talk about him much when I first mention him to you.”
She nodded slowly. “Chad is … a really hidden secret.”
Alex swallowed down the lump in his throat, staying quiet until they finally reached Hayley’s house. He turned to her as he pulled out the key from the ignition. “Can I …” He trailed off as her eyes met his. “Can I ask what happened?”
Hayley moved her head towards the window again as tears pricked at her eyes. “Chad is an amazing guitarist and so successful in just a local band …” She took a moment. “But no one really knows what goes on backstage.” She ran a hand through her hair and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Chad has always had anger problems, and I knew that when we used to date. But they never got really bad, until he … started to hit me.”
Without thinking, Alex reached over and touched her arm. “Hayley …”
“No, no, it’s okay.” She finally looked at him, and he was surprised at the tears running down her cheeks. He had never seen her like this before. “I should’ve known. I also should’ve known he’d find me again; he always does.”
“No,” Alex shook his head, “you don’t deserve that.” He pulled her close to him, surprised at how Hayley was relaxed and not pulling away. He kissed the top of her head, pushing strands of her orange hair from her forehead. “I promise you, Hayley, I will never hurt you. Never.”
Hayley clung onto his form for her dear life, her tears staining his shirt. It felt good to finally tell someone the story besides Tay. Although, if she were being honest, she wasn’t crying because of the memories of her past, but because she knew she would be hurting Alex soon.
"Why is the stage so empty?”
Hayley was sitting in her usual seat at the bar in the 8x10 club, imaging a tumbleweed rolling across the lonely stage set up in the front. She took note of the set of instruments located in the back as Alex looked up from where he stood behind the counter, trying to figure out the new cash register his dad bought for the club.
“Couldn’t find anyone free tonight,” Alex shrugged, pushing down on a button.
Hayley watched him fidget with the machine and become frustrated, causing her to laugh. “I think you should give up on that already.”
“I. Will. Not.” He pushed down on one of the huge keys, making the register full of cash pop out and hit his stomach. “Fuck!”
Hayley couldn’t stop her laughter at that point. “You should’ve listened to me!”
Alex rubbed his gut where the register hit him. “Shut up.”
“Back to what I was saying,” she then proceeded, “I spotted a guitar right next to the stage …”
“Hayley,” he warned.
“You should go up there and play something!”
Alex rounded the corner of the bar and took the seat next to her. “There are too many people here, and there are still more coming in.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t think it’s possible.”
She hopped off her tall chair. “I think all you need is a push.”
“Wha―?”
That was when―with all her might―Hayley started pushing Alex towards the stage. The boy was confused at how such a small girl could be so strong. With each shove, she was pushing him closer and closer to the stage. One step. One step. Stair. Stair. Stair.
Hayley pulled him behind her once they made it on the stage. She tapped the microphone and finally grabbed hold of it, not minding the confused faces of the crowd below. “Hey, guys! This guy behind me is my boyfriend and he has an amazing voice that I think you should hear! Enjoy!” She pranced off the stage, but not before whispering in his ear, “You’re gonna kill it!”
Alex just stared at the crowd for a good moment, his nerves taking over. Hayley went back to her seat at the bar and prayed he would move or do something. Finally, he made his way a little to the right and grabbed the guitar, also taking hold of a chair in the process. He sat the chair in front of the mic and adjusted the stand, plopping down on the seat. “Um―hey, everyone,” he smiled nervously while quickly tuning the guitar. “I know this is kinda weird, but―uh―yeah, I wrote this recently for a very special girl.”
He started strumming the strings, immediately humming the melody. Hayley started smiling and laughing, because she knew the exact words to this song.
“No, I won't call you baby
I won’t buy you daisies
Cause that don’t work
And I know, how to get you crazy
How to make you want me
So bad it hurts
“I wanna be good, good, good to you
But that’s not, not, not your type
So I’m gonna be bad for you
Tonight, tonight, tonight …”
He grinned to the crowd, especially at Hayley when he noticed her singing along.
“I’ll misbehave if it turns you on
No Mr. Right, if you want Mr. Wrong
I’ll tell you lies
If you don’t like the truth
I don’t wanna be bad
I just wanna be bad enough for you
Well, I just wanna be bad enough for you
Well, I just wanna be bad enough …”
Hayley giggled to herself as Alex continued playing along to the rhythm. That was until she felt a tap on her shoulder.
Her brow furrowed as she turned to the person sitting on the stool besides her, and her expression instantly morphed into a frown. She found herself becoming choked up at the face she hadn’t seen in so long, a person she surely didn’t miss. “What are you doing here, Chad?” She seethed through her teeth.
The ex-boyfriend shrugged, and Hayley noticed he had become a lot more built since the last time she saw him, which meant he got even stronger. “That your boyfriend up there?” He pointed to Alex up on stage. “Lowered your standards, Hayley? The guy looks like a weakling, if you ask me.”
“Well, no one asked you anything.” She ground her teeth together. “Now go away.”
“Aw, c’mon, Hayles,” he reached out to caress her cheek. “I know you missed me.” His hand slid down to her neck, but she smacked it away quickly.
“Screw off, Chad.” She whispered, careful for anyone’s ears.
He suddenly grabbed for her jaw, pulling her face in his direction and already crushing it between his fingers. “Listen here, bitch.” He hissed enough to spit in her face. “I’m just trying to be friendly, ya hear? What I don’t need is you acting like a fucking bitch to me. Learn how to be friendly to a person when they―”
“Hey, Chad.”
The two exes turned towards Alex, who just finished his song and hopped off the stage. Alex’s eyes were fixed on Hayley’s as Chad immediately let go of her and smiled. Hayley was rubbing her jawline.
“Why are you touching my girlfriend?”
Chad stood from his seat and started for the door. “Nothing to worry about, small fry.”
Alex suddenly grabbed his shoulder, spinning Chad back around. “No,” he muttered, “answer my question.”
Chad turned to face Alex, a wicked grin on his face as he glanced back at Hayley on her stool. “You wanna know?” He then shrugged. “It wasn’t me, if I’m being honest. She asked for it, like she always does. She just still hasn’t gotten over me yet.”
Alex looked towards Hayley, who was widening her eyes and mouthing the word, No. The boyfriend cocked an eyebrow towards the guy who he used to look up to. “I’m sorry, Chad, but I’m going to have to ask you to leave this place.”
“What’s the problem?” Chad inched closer to Alex while raising his fists. “Can’t take the truth that your girlfriend will always be a slut? You might want to finally open your eyes.”
“You son of a―”
Hayley finally stood from her seat, approaching angered boys. “Alex, calm―”
She was too late. In that second, Alex pulled his arm back and instantly hit Chad’s cheek, making his head spin to the right. Chad stumbled a little, his eyes heated, as he ran up towards Alex and tried punching him in the same spot. He missed, to Hayley’s surprise, who was failing at pulling Alex back. Alex got in another punch then, right at Chad’s nose, and before the boys could do any more damage, Mr. Gaskarth came running out of the store room from behind the bar.
“Break it up! Break it up!” He pushed them away from each other as Hayley gave one last tug at Alex, finally pulling him back. “You!” Mr. Gaskarth pointed at Chad. “Get out of my club!”
Chad put up his hands in surrender. “Have fun with her, Alex!” He pushed open the door, and before he could leave, he screamed, “SHE FUCKS LIKE A WHORE ANYWAYS!”
The club became absolutely silent, and Hayley finally noticed the crowd of people staring at them. Mr. Gaskarth glanced towards the lot of people. “You’ve seen enough!” The crowd dispersed a little and went back to talking amongst themselves.
“Hey, dad,” Alex muttered, “I’m gonna take Hayley home, okay?”
Mr. Gaskarth nodded. “I’ll take over for you.”
---
The ride home was eerily silent as Hayley hugged her knees to her chest and stared out the window. Alex struggled with what to say to her, but it always ended up with his conscious telling him how much of a fool he sounded. He decided to just speak his mind, which ended up with him―
“I’m sorry.” He choked out. “I shouldn’t have―”
“It’s okay.” She sighed. “I’m used to it with him.”
He glanced in her direction. “You shouldn’t be used to that.” He shook his head. “Now I understand why you didn’t talk about him much when I first mention him to you.”
She nodded slowly. “Chad is … a really hidden secret.”
Alex swallowed down the lump in his throat, staying quiet until they finally reached Hayley’s house. He turned to her as he pulled out the key from the ignition. “Can I …” He trailed off as her eyes met his. “Can I ask what happened?”
Hayley moved her head towards the window again as tears pricked at her eyes. “Chad is an amazing guitarist and so successful in just a local band …” She took a moment. “But no one really knows what goes on backstage.” She ran a hand through her hair and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Chad has always had anger problems, and I knew that when we used to date. But they never got really bad, until he … started to hit me.”
Without thinking, Alex reached over and touched her arm. “Hayley …”
“No, no, it’s okay.” She finally looked at him, and he was surprised at the tears running down her cheeks. He had never seen her like this before. “I should’ve known. I also should’ve known he’d find me again; he always does.”
“No,” Alex shook his head, “you don’t deserve that.” He pulled her close to him, surprised at how Hayley was relaxed and not pulling away. He kissed the top of her head, pushing strands of her orange hair from her forehead. “I promise you, Hayley, I will never hurt you. Never.”
Hayley clung onto his form for her dear life, her tears staining his shirt. It felt good to finally tell someone the story besides Tay. Although, if she were being honest, she wasn’t crying because of the memories of her past, but because she knew she would be hurting Alex soon.
Notes
Even though these are sad, I like writing these because they reveal more of the past ^w^
Subscribe/ comment/ rate :)
Rock on \m/
Haha, wait a minute, hold up. HOLD UP.
I started reading this story, thinking it was your other story I have yet to read with multiple installments... and then I just got to this last update, realizing I confused the stories the whole time AND THIS WAS NEVER FINISHED. UGH.
OMG. This story though...
This story is seriously amazing. Very John Tucker Must Die, but different. I've seen people take that plot and incorporate it with an ATL story before, but this story is definitely different with it; not as much of a direct influence, but kind of a similar thing going on, and able to stand alone on its own and be great. I'm really bummed that this was never continued; you're a really talented writer and I'm itching to know how this would have ended now. Especially considering I was thrown for a loop since I mixed it up with the other story, ugh! SO FRUSTRATING.
I hope maybe you still get on here, or get notifications, or are just able to see this comment... I see another person commented around a month ago, so you definitely still have readers!
That being said, I know that life can be hell with hecticness and just reality and so... that seemed to be catching up with you in your last author's note. I hope everything is okay with you. Even if this story isn't ever continued, I hope at the very least, you're still writing on your own time... you definitely have a knack for it.
And as Taylex_Jarkarth said... this story made me feel weird things as well. Maybe butterflies? Hayley's emotions definitely transpired through me as a reader; whatever she was feeling, I was feeling. You conveyed her as a very relatable character, and I commend you for that. I'm just bummed that things had to go down the way they did. :/ I'm just wondering how you planned to end it all, now. lol. I have faith that Alex still loves her, and if he knew the full truth (and Hayley plucks up the courage to tell him how she truly feels and how it changed for her), there may be chance for reconciliation. But idk. What she did was pretty big, so it's hard to tell and you honestly can't blame him for being angry. But I'm an optimist, lol.
How did I confuse the multiple installment stories. Ugh. I guess I would've had to reach the end of what you had eventually. XD But it just frustrates me that there isn't more to read!
But anyway, you are seriously an amazing writer, and I just wanted to let you know that. This story had me in with just the first chapter. Even though it's been a minute, I have faith that you could come back to it; I've seen other authors do so before. :) I will be here to read and leave feedback if you do, for sure.
7/2/17