We're All Just a Walking Travesty

Leah’s POV:

“Jesus christ, Ariel slow the fuck down.” I laughed at my friend scarfing down the food.
“But….fOOD IS JUST….SO GOOD, MAN.” She barely makes out between each bite.
“You’re going to choke and die.” I said with a straight face before bursting into an uncontrolled laughter.
“At least I’ll die doing the one thing I love.”
“You’re not having sex.” I pointed out.
“Touché.” Our conversation was cut short by the sound of my phone vibrating from under my leg.

Jack: Hello neighbor friend.

L: Hi.

J: What’s going on?

L: Food. Friend. Couch. You?

J: Hanging out with Alex because Jalex.

L: Jalex?

J: Yeah, it’s the ship our fans have for us. We have a lot of gay sex, dude.

L: ……..What the fuck is a ship and Jack I thought you were straight. That explains the dick jokes I guess.

J: KIDDING LOL. Yeah, no I am straight. A ship is a relationship, yk.

“Who are you talking to that’s more important than me?” Ariel interrupted.
“Jack, he’s hanging out with Alex because they’re gay.” She gave me a puzzled look. “Kidding, it’s some joke their fans have.”
“It’s a ship, isn’t it?” she pondered.
“Does everyone but me have a ship what the actual fuck.” I threw my arms into the air exaggerating.
“Well…” she started.
“Don’t start,” I stopped her before it was too late.
“Why don’t you invite Jack over?”
“Because he’s with his friend, what if I interrupt band mate time.”
“This is your opportunity to invite them both, then!”
“Uh, Alright but if he rejects me I’m saying you took the phone.”
“For a band member, I take full responsibility for this shit.”


L: Do you guys wanna come hang out?

“There I texted him.” I showed Ariel the message.
“Yay! You won’t get rejected, okay, I feel it,” she answered, smirking in my direction.

J: Yeah! Sure be there in like two.

“They’ll be here in like two minutes. Please, no sex on my couch. It’s new.” I laughed.
“No promises.” A knocking at the door started as she wiggled her eyebrows at me. That was the quickest two minutes of my damn life.
I stood up and walked toward the door, each step for some reason growing more and more nervous. I opened the door revealing a smiling Jack and an annoyed Alex.
“Jack get off of my foot, fucker.” Alex complained as the taller man leaned more of his weight toward him, adding pressure to his foot.
“Sorry, not sorry, Alex!” Jack said with a grin.
“Jack are you always so mean to your friends?” I asked him. He nodded and smiled into the room toward Ariel, who was no doubt turning red.
“Hi, I’m Alex.” Jacks friend said. He stuck out his hand as Jack did in the same spot the day before. I shook it quickly, trying to get back to Ariel as fast as I could. They followed me into the room and Alex shut the door behind him.
“Uh, hi there,” Ariel said to them, standing up from the couch and holding out her hand.
Jack stepped forward, grabbed ahold of her hand, and shook it with a smile. “Hi, I’m Jack.”
“Ariel.” same
“You know there’s something on your face…?” I started laughing as Ariel’s face turned bright red again.
“I...uh..excuse me,” she said before quickly rushing out of the room.
“So, uh have a seat.” I awkwardly gestured towards the living room. “It isn’t much, but it’s something for now.”
“Happy to oblige,” Jack said before practically swan diving onto the couch. He looked up at Alex and made eyes at him. “C’mon, babe, let’s have gay sex.” Alex rolled his eyes before slightly laughing and sitting in the armchair.
“Oooh, rejected,” I grinned. Jack shot Alex a pouty face and buried his face in the couch. “Drinks, anyone?” Alex nodded and Jack made a “yes” noise.
As I pulled the requested capri suns out of the fridge I heard Ariel talking in the other room.
“So you guys are in a band?” She inquired. I rolled my eyes and walked into the room. Ariel was sitting on the couch next to Jack, her feet propped up on his lap like they’ve been best friends since day one. Christ, Ariel.
“Yeah, our band is called All Time Low and we fucking suck,” Alex said and Ariel bursted into a giggling fit.
“I’m sure you guys aren’t that bad,” she said, looking up at me.
“What do you do in the band, Alex? Jack says he’s better at guitar than you.” I joked.
“I sing and play guitar. No, Jack is not better at it than I am!” he said, raising his voice and smiling at Jack in a devilish way.
“You wish Alex.” He retorted.
“Hey, can you take these Capri Suns before I “accidentally” trip and throw them at you guys?” I jumped into the conversation, holding out two strawberry-kiwi drinks. Alex and Jack both took the drinks and nodded at me as a form of thanks. I smiled and sat down in a regular wooden chair opposite of Alex’s location.
“So, we know some general things about Leah over there, but what about you, Ariel?” Jack poked her arm. Ariel’s blonde hair fell down in her face and covered up the pink that was burning into her cheeks from Jack. God, that girl is such a sucker for guys in bands, it almost makes me sick.
“Uh, well, I’m 23 years old,” she started off, “and I like to paint things.”
“No way, that’s awesome!” Jack exclaimed suddenly, making us all flinch in our seats. “Do you think you could design our band’s logo or something?”
“Uhm, I guess, I uh..I mean yeah..yeah, I can do that. Why not?”
Jack’s face lit up. Alex shuffled around in his seat, clearly as uncomfortable as I am sitting in here. He doesn’t exactly know Ariel or I, and we haven’t made much of an attempt to include him in the conversation. Although, they haven’t made much of an attempt to include me in it, either. Yikes.
“Don’t make fun of me for this, but I sorta still live with my mom. I never went to college because when my dad left, he took all the money with him. There was no way we would make enough money, so after my junior year in highschool, I just kinda quit school. Now I work on art.”
She was lying right through her teeth to two somewhat strangers. I don’t blame her though. After what really happened to her father, I wouldn’t want to talk about it to a couple of randoms either. Poor, Ariel.
It took me a few seconds to realize that I had been eyeing down Alex the whole time I was out of it. He was staring back, one eyebrow raised like he was confused as to why I was staring, which I bet he was. He shifted in his seat but kept his eyes on me.I looked away after I realised that i’m still staring. I breathed in heavily as Jack and Ariel kept their conversation going, Ariel laughing at everything he said. I glanced back up at Alex and he raised his eyebrow at me. I suddenly froze, and my mind went crazy. Thoughts of what he was thinking. He could think i’m crazy and hate me. He could think I’m some stalker or something, who knows what he’s thinking. The air in the room got heavier the more I thought and suddenly I felt my breathing stop completely.
I knew I could breathe, it’s not asthma or and anything, just anxiety. But in my mind, at the time that doesn’t process. I gasped loudly causing everyone to stop and look over at me. Ariels eyes widened knowing good and well what was happening. I stood up quickly and scurried into the other room.
I sat down on my bed trying to concentrate on my breathing but the
only thing I could think of was Alex thinking negatively about me for staring at him. It’s always the little things that freak me out. Things that shouldn’t
matter to normal people, but I’m not normal. I’m scared of every little thing, and nobody understands.
“What’s happening to her?” I heard Jack in the other room, their footsteps getting louder.
“It’s just an anxiety attack she’ll be fine, stay out here I’ll go in and help her. It happens all the time.” Ariel assured him. The steps stopped and I heard Alex speak up.
“No let me go in.”
“What? Why?” Ariels voice sounded confused as she questioned him.
“Alex has anxiety problems, he’ll know how to calm her down.” Jack answered her before Alex could. I heard a sigh.
I slid down to the floor, with my back up against the bed and my head in between my knees. I didn’t know I was crying until I ran my hand across my eyes.
My breathing became heavier as the door opened and I gasped
again for a breath I knew I could take in. I heard the person sit beside and and rub my back. It was definitely not Ariel. Alex.
“Breath in through your nose and out your mouth. Breath with your stomach muscles. Move your stomach.” I tried what he said and my head started to spin. “It’s okay. You’re okay.” He whispered as he wrapped an arm around my shoulder, rubbing it with his thumb.
“I can’t breath.” I choked out, even though it was a lie.
“Yes you can just don’t think about it.” He said into my ear. My eyes flickered quickly to his then to the laces of my shoes.
I took in I a sharp breath as I concentrated on the pattern of the carpet. Slowly his arm wrapped completely around me and he pulled me into a tight hug.
“See? You’re doing better already.” He whispered into my hair. “I understand how you feel. It’s alright.
“How?” I whispered up at him.
“How what?”
“Do you understand?” I questioned him.
“I have anxiety too.”
“I’m sorry.” I looked back down at the carpet.
“It’s okay. It’s not as bad now as it used to be.” The sound of the front door opening and closing made us both glance up. “Stay right here. I’ll go see what it is.” He got up slowly putting me back on the ground before he made his way out of the room.
Slightly surprised by how quickly Alex helped, I looked at my clock to see the time. 10:46pm. Alex came back in and smiled at me.
“Jack and Ariel are gone.” I chuckled.
“Typical.” His smile only grew as he shook his head.

Ariel’s POV

“What? You’ve got to be kidding me!” I laughed at Jack’s stupid and corny joke that he just cracked. “That’s the worst thing I have ever heard, you moron.”
Jack shrugged his shoulders and smiled at me. “What can I say, I’m a sucker for shitty jokes.” I laughed again and sat up on the couch. I ran my fingers through my hair, having done a shit job fixing it before the guys arrived.
A sudden gasping sound from my left completely brought me out of my “lovey-dovey-dopey” state. I knew what was happening. I looked at Leah and instant panic filled my gut. I widened my eyes and stood up. She was having another anxiety attack. Her fists were slowly opening and closing, her knuckles pale white. The look in her eyes was glassy, that glassy look where you know she’s there but she isn’t there at the same time. She stood up and ran from the living room to her bedroom and I heard the door slam shut. I turned around to face two, now curious and clearly worried, band members. They both also stood up and started walking back through the house towards where Leah went. I quickly moved in front of her door, cutting them off from going any further.
“What’s happening to her?” Jack asked. There’s no point in trying to lie to them, honestly.
“It’s just an anxiety attack she’ll be fine,” I said, “Stay out here I’ll go in and help her. It happens all the time.”
To my surprise, Alex moved in front of Jack and looked me square in the face.
“No, let me go in.”
“What? Why?”
“Alex has anxiety problems, he’ll know how to calm her down.” Jack answered me before Alex could respond. I hesitated for a moment, and then sighed, rethinking things through. It would be better for Leah to have someone who actually has anxiety issues to help her out rather than for me to. I don’t understand her situation as well as Alex probably does, so there’s no way out of this.
I stepped out of the way of her door. Alex cautiously turned the doorknob and slipped inside before I closed the door behind him again. He started talking to her, only the door muffled his words to a whisper. I sighed again and turned around, walking back into the living room. I sat back on the couch and thought I would just wait. It’s usually what I did when she had panic attacks in the past. There’s nothing else you can really do.
Jack appeared at my side and wrapped his arm around my shoulder.
“She’s gonna be okay,” he reassured, squeezing my shoulder a little bit. I nodded, knowing she’d be fine. She always is. We always are, right?
“Thanks, Jack,” I whispered, not really feeling like talking much right now. It’s so different not being the one in there with Leah. I’m worried, but not worried, because I trust Alex, but I don’t. The struggle is real, my man.
Jack took his arm off of my shoulder and stood up. He held out his hand to me and gave me the “take my hand, bitch” look. Raising my eyebrows, I took ahold of his hand and let him pull me to my feet.
“Let’s go outside. There’s something I’ll show you that’ll get Leah’s panic attack off of your mind.” He pulled me along to the front door and swung it open, the dim hallway light flickering every few seconds. We walked down the corridor to where the stairs were and jumped down each individual step. Jack and I burst out laughing once we reached the bottom floor. I nearly passed out from the lack of oxygen my lungs were receiving at that moment. We quickly pulled ourselves together and walked through the front doors, letting the damp night air fill my nostrils. I closed my eyes for a brief moment and imagined myself as a teenager again, back when my father was alive. This was the kind of weather he cherished every moment of. It made me sad, thinking about my father, but when I opened my eyes and saw the [[MOTHERFUCKING MOST PERFECT BROWN BALLS OF EYE THAT SPARKLED LIKE FUCKING EDWARD CULLEN IN THE LIGHT FULL OF HAPPINESS AND COMPASSION AND CARE I JUST FUCKING MELTED INTO AN AMOEBA OF FUCKING MELTED FLESH AND BONES BECAUSE JACK BASSAM BARAKAT IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL MOTHERUFKCER IN THE WORLD.]] most beautiful brown eyes on the planet looking right at me, all of that sadness melted away. I smiled.
“Now that you’re done have orgasmic thoughts about me, let the show begin!” He giggled and I had to bite my lip to keep myself from dying. There was something about Jack that just got me, and I don’t know whether that will be uplifting for me, or the downfall of us all(whoever gets this, ily).
He stood behind me and covered my eyes with his hands. I felt my breathing hitch as the front of his body made contact with the back of mine, the warmth of his body contagious. His breaths were steady, and each one sent chills racing through my spine and nearly made my heart burst out of my chest. I reached up and lightly held on to his wrists, using them to keep myself steady. He started walking us through the grass, directing me in random directions every once in a while. Once he was content with where we were at, he pulled his hands away from my face. Again, I opened my eyes. We were in an open field a few hundred yards from the back of Leah’s apartment.
“What are we doing here?” I asked, seriously confused.
“Look up,” Jack said. I did so, and gasped. The stars were beautiful right then. They shone brilliantly, certain ones overpowering others to create a magnificent masterpiece of constellations. I grinned. Jack was right. This made me feel a thousand times better than just sitting there in the apartment, worried about Leah when there was no reason to worry at all.
“This is amazing. How did you know they would be so wonderful tonight? I’ve never seen the stars like this.”
He half smiled and shrugged.
“I didn't.”
A period of silence washed over us as we marveled at the sky. Sagittarius and Aries were the first constellations I saw. They always have been. When I was younger, about 5 years old, my dad liked to look at the constellations every so often. He would always point out Aries to me, claiming that my name is a derivative of the ram and that it was fate that I was born on March 23rd. Sagittarius was his zodiac sign, having been born on December 4th. These two symbols were like precious silver to me.
“Are you ready to go back? It’s getting super late and Alex might think I've taken you as my next sex victim,” Jack said nonchalantly, pulling me out of my daze. For some reason, I just started laughing hysterically, as if that was the funniest thing he’s ever said. “I’m serious.”
“Yeah, let’s head back. I’m kind of tired anyways.”
We both started walking back towards reality, chatting about the small things that don’t mean much to others. Jack’s hand reached out and lightly punched my arm. “TAG, YOU’RE IT!” He darted off in the direction of home. I snapped out of my momentary phase and chased him through the field, our laughing and choppy footsteps filling the air. I never thought I could have this much fun with someone. Especially someone, such as Jack Barakat. I would have tackled Jack right then and there if it wasn't for the faint outline of my childhood friend standing 20 yards away from us, just watching us .

Notes

SO YEAH I QUITE ENJOYED COMBINING TWO POV'S INTO ONE CHAPTER I DON'T KNOW I ENJOY THIS CHAPTER.
so two chapters in one night if anyone cares
Ily
~Leanna+Larken