Three Months Later

I had figured out what I wanted, I figured out what I needed. I sat in my room and looked around at everything, my bed was freshly made and things were coming into place.

“Settling in all right?” Zack came into my room and leaned against the door pane. I looked up and smiled.

“Yep, I think everything’s coming into place.” I nodded and got off the bed. “Thanks again for letting me move in with you, just until I find an apartment of my own.”

He rolled his eyes. “C’mon Shay, you know that you can stay here as long as you want.”

“Okay Zack,” I laughed and shook my head. “So when are we going to tell the guys that I’m here to stay?”

“I invited them over for dinner tonight; they don’t know that you’re here so it’ll be a nice surprise for them.” He smiled and leaned off the door frame. I went back to putting away some of my things, arranging my books onto some shelves and putting my record player on top of my dresser. There was a special shelf dedicated to my CD’s and another dedicated to my records. I loved how everything looked and I fell in love with this room faster than I did with my room back in Cleveland. I didn’t realize how long I had been in there; the music from my record player had been playing softly in the background while I fixed the little things.

When I was finished I lied back on my bed and looked up at the ceiling. I had applied for a few jobs at local magazines and newspapers just to see what my options were, for now I was busy working at the Journey’s nearby Zack’s house. While there were a ton of things about my new residence here, there was a lot that I missed back in Ohio. For one I was missing out on my amazing job at AP. It was weird not meeting new people every day, I usually only made business acquaintances with them but I still missed it. Then there was my apartment. It was right next to my office and there was a ton of great places to run out and grab food, which left my car always sitting in the garage gathering dust. But when I went back I just knew that things weren’t going to be the same, that I couldn’t just shut out my friends any more. So when I came to live at Zack’s house, I knew that I was finally home.

I heard the front door open and the guys were causing a ruckus; I didn’t leave my room yet because I didn’t know how Zack wanted to surprise them. A few moments later I heard them walking up the stairs, probably coming up to my room. “You guys have to see what I did with the extra room.” Zack told them as they approached my door. The door opened and all of their faces lit up.

“Shay!” Jack yelled and attached me, he laughed and pulled me into a big hug. “God damn, I thought I wasn’t going to see you for a really long time again!”

“I couldn’t stand the thought of not being able to see you guys anymore, things just wouldn’t be the same without you in my life.” I smiled and walked over to the others, pulling Rian into a hug and then Alex. He gave me a sad smile, apologizing without his words and I knew he was going to try and pull me aside to have a heart to heart talk, which is just what I wanted.

“So now that we’re all reunited, why don’t we go downstairs and eat the lovely food provided from the Chinese restaurant nearby.” Zack chuckled and we all followed him downstairs, Alex and I lagging behind the rest of them.

“So you decided to move back, huh?” He asked as we started to descend the stairs.

“Yeah,” I nodded. “After going back to Ohio, I just knew that things wouldn’t be the same and I wouldn’t be able to handle it. Don’t get me wrong, I miss meeting new bands for interviews all the time but if I’m here I’ll have all the celebrities that I need.”

He smiled. “Well I’m flattered.” We walked into the kitchen and dished up, each of us going over to the big couch and finding a spot so we could watch a show or a movie. It was just like old times, the five of us back at it again like those years were just erased from the timeline. I was curled up between Jack and Alex, my two best friends, and things had never been better.



“So how is the adjustment period to Baltimore?” Alex asked as we sat out in the back yard, just sitting in two lawn chairs on the grass.

I shrugged and looked down at the grass. “It’s honestly the fastest adjustment period that I’ve ever been through. Moving to Cleveland was the worst but coming here just feels so-”

“Right,” He finished my sentence and we both smiled. “Shay, I know that you might hate me for what happened back on tour and I’m really sorry. I just thought that we could connect while we were on tour again but I knew that if Jake was there then I wouldn’t have the chance.”

I nodded and looked up into his eyes, they were glossed over and he looked like he was ready to cry. “Alex, I don’t hate you for what you did.” I scooted my chair closer to him so I could hold his hand. “Jake found me when I broke down in the airport, we talked for a while and he explained to me what happened. And I can’t believe that you still love me after all these years.”

“And I’m in shock that you’re even talking to me after all these years.” He shook his head. “I mean after the shit I’ve pulled, why would you even bother giving me the time of day?”

“Because there’s always more to the story,” I smiled. “And now I’m finally ready to hear the rest of the story.”

He nodded and let go of my hand so he could rub his face.

*Flashback*

Alex’s POV

I was walking through the back of the venue and there were groupies crawling everywhere. Jack had a couple on his arm and I laughed to myself as he nodded and flirted with them. Meanwhile Rian was on the phone with Cassadee and Zack was nowhere to be found, it was typical for him to disappear during a party. Someone offered me a bottle of beer and I gladly accepted, and it definitely wasn’t going to be my only one of the night. From there it was five beers down and I wasn’t even thinking straight. A girl with long brown hair and blue eyes walked up to me, my only thoughts were about Shay and she was finally here.

“Shay, what are you doing here?” I laughed and pulled her into a big hug. “I can’t believe you came out to surprise me on tour!”

She faltered for a minute but became almost as excited as I was. “Oh Alex, how could I stay away from you for so long? Being home without you is terrible.”
I furrowed my brows and shook my head. “You sound a little different Shay, is everything all right?” I slurred my words and her lips twisted into a wicked smile.

“Baby I’m fine, maybe we should get you back on the bus so we can get reconnected.” She pulled me onto the bus and pushed me onto the couch as soon as we got inside. In that moment I had clarity, this was not Shay. This couldn’t be Shay.

But I let her continue anyway, it had been so long since Shay and I had done anything besides talk so I let her go. As her lips moved down my neck and farther down my body, there was no denying the hard cock in my pants. All I thought about was Shay; I tried to pretend she was Shay. As her tongue ran over my cock that was it, I couldn’t pretend anymore.

“I can’t do this.” I lifted her head up and zipped my pants back up. “I know you’re not my girlfriend and I really think you should leave.”

She got up and scoffed. “If you’re honestly stupid enough to think that I was her, then you’re a fucking idiot.” She rolled her eyes and left the bus, leaving me stunned at what I had just done. I cheated on my girlfriend in a moment of weakness, I told myself. But there was no way that I could just tell her something like this over the phone.

*End Flashback*

Shay’s POV

I sat there for a moment with my arms crossed, tears in my eyes, and a cluttered brain that wouldn’t stop moving. “So you’re telling me that you cheated on me with someone who you thought was me? And then even though you realized it wasn’t her, you let her continue anyway because you were so horny?” I tried not to get upset but it was really hard not to. And besides, I was the one who wanted to hear about what happened in the first place so I have to listen to the whole story.

“And I know that the alcohol wasn’t an excuse at all.” He gulped and looked up at me. “If you don’t want to forgive me then I understand.”

I bit my lip and got up from the chair. “I just need some time to think about this.” And I left him sitting there, alone in a lawn chair with an empty one in front of him. All he was giving me was complete bullshit and I wanted some real answers. While Alex was sitting in the backyard, the guys were still sitting around the couch with beers in hand. I walked into the kitchen and grabbed one and went over to sit with them.

“Are you all right Shay?” Zack rubbed my back. “You look upset.”

I nodded and downed some beer. “Alex told me what happened when he cheated, it honestly sounds like such bullshit.” I shook my head and continued to down it until the bottle was empty.

Jack and Rian looked at each other and then looked at me. “So I suppose you want some real answers then, huh? Something to confirm or deny what Alex told you?”

I nodded and Jack got up and sat down next to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. “In my plastered state, I saw Alex leave the venue with that girl and I’m not going to lie, she looked a lot like you.”

I furrowed my brows and pushed him off me. “There’s no way that happened, it’s not like Alex would just automatically think she was me. Besides, even if he was drunk he would’ve realized that when he was talking to her in the venue.”

“If it makes you feel any better, she left the bus in less than a minute.” Rian nodded.
Jack shrugged. “Plus he still had a boner so I know that they couldn’t have gotten that far.”

I got off the couch and threw away my beer. “You guys were there for me after the breakup, why the hell are you justifying his actions all of a sudden? Who’s side are you on?”

“Does this have to be about sides?” Zack sighed and walked into the kitchen with me. “He’s our band mate and you’re our family, it’s not like we can just downright pick someone out of this whole situation. At the end of the day you have to realize that he loves you and he always has. Think about it, it’s not like he cheated with a blonde haired girl with a fake tan. No, he went with someone who looked a lot like you, and that’s saying something.”

I grabbed two beers and went up to my room. I locked the door and went over to my record player, putting in Common Courtesy by A Day To Remember and then I lay down on my bed, looking up at the ceiling. If being in a relationship with Alex was going to require this much thinking, I don’t even know if it’s worth it.

Notes

Why am I doing this to myself? I'm not even sure what this chapter is good lord. Please stop me.