Five Years

We sat in the bus the next day, each guy scattered in the bus and doing various activities. The next show wasn’t going to start for another seven hours, Matt had run out to grab some lunch for us. I was sitting in the front lounge on my laptop and Alex was sitting across from me on the other couch. It was really quiet, maybe even a little too quiet.

“So how did you like the show last night?” He broke the silence and didn’t even look up from his phone while he spoke.

“Uh it was great, it really took me back to the good old days when I used to go on tour with you guys.” I smiled and earned a smile from him too. “And I just want to thank you for the shout out last night, it really meant a lot.”

He put his phone into his pocket and came to sit next to me on the couch, he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer to his side. “It really means a lot that you came back, we all missed you.”

We sat like that for a few minutes, just two friends sitting together and hanging out. We talked about old times, back when we used to spend so much time together and never leave each other alone when they were home. “Hey, you remember that time when we ran away from the release party and made out in a bathroom stall?” He laughed. “That was hilarious, trying to walk out of the girls’ bathroom without getting caught was scary.”

I tensed up, we were talking about old times but back when we were dating? I figured he would know what was appropriate to talk about and what wasn’t. I closed my laptop and got up from the couch, “I’m gonna go over and see what’s happening on the Pierce the Veil bus.” I put my laptop in my bunk and slipped on my converse, completing my outfit made up of dark wash skinny jeans and a gray hoodie. Jack followed me out of the bus and he rested his elbow on my shoulder.

“Where are we going?” He asked as we approached the Pierce the Veil bus. “Ah, we’re going to the mighty burrito land. Hey, have you checked out their fat kid drawer yet?”

We walked onto the bus and I asked Jack what he meant. “Uh, what’s a fat kid drawer?”

“It’s this fucking awesome drawer of candy and other various sweets that we receive from fans and other cool people.” Mike walked out of the bunk area and into the front lounge. “So it looks like you’re just in time for some home cooked food! Vic just cooked up some meat as you can see,” he pointed to the stovetop. “And all of the ingredients are out, including our very own hot sauce.”

Jack looked at me and the food, “Well I’d love to join but Matt is bringing back some food for me.”

“I’m here to stay though!” I laughed. “I still need to spend some one on one time with you guys.”

Mike smiled and Jack walked out of the bus, leaving me with just the guys. “Hey Shay!” Vic walked into the front lounge and pulled me into a hug. “Are you here for burrito building 101?”

“Yep, I suck at making them so please make me a pro!” I laughed and he showed me the steps to make a perfect burrito, his way of course. We finished making them and he took me outside to sit under their canopy.

“So how are you enjoying the tour so far?” Vic asked as we sat down in a couple of lawn chairs.

“It’s a little early to tell, but it’s awesome so far.” I smiled. “It honestly already feels good to be back.”

“Yeah, Alex told me that you used to go on tour with them on your school breaks but then the breakup happened.” Vic gave me a sympathetic smile and reached out. “So if you don’t mind telling me, what made the two of you break up in the first place?”

I sighed and took a bite of my burrito before even thinking about what happened. If Alex only had enough guts to tell them that we dated and not bring up the douche move that ended our relationship then I was going to have to tell everyone what an asshole he was. But there’s always three sides to the story, yours, theirs, and the truth.

“Well, before I left Baltimore he came home early from tour and he told me that he cheated. Now at this point I hadn’t told him about my opportunity with college and the internship from Alt Press, so I broke the news to him then.” I shrugged. “I mean, I was pissed and I wanted him to know that I wasn’t going to take any bullshit. So I told him not to worry about seeing me and then I kicked his ass out of my house. And that was the end of it, the last time I saw him before this tour.”

“Wow,” Vic looked down at the ground with wide eyes. “I mean, what? I never thought that Alex would be capable of something like that.”

“Maybe not now,” I sighed. “I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and keep things friends. But I don’t know if that’s what he wants.”

Vic furrowed his brows. “What do you mean?”

“Well we were just talking about old times when I used to tour with them and then he brought up a time when we were together.” I looked over at their bus. “And, I was uncomfortable. Why would he bring that up?”

“What exactly did he bring up?” Vic was able to chow down on his food while I talked but I was too busy venting to a guy that I barely know.

“Well there was this time at the Nothing Personal release and we snuck off into the girls bathroom and made out in one of the stalls.” I frowned and took a big bite of my burrito.

He furrowed his brows and thought for a minute. “Watch out for that, he probably wants to get back together. He’s going to bring up the good times from when the two of you dated and make you forget about that awful breakup.” He nodded and I continued to eat.

“So what should I do?” I asked with my mouth full.

“Whatever you want,” he laughed. “It’s your life.”

“Thanks Vic,” I smiled. “Sorry to bother you with my problems before we really even knew each other.”

“Are you kidding me?” He laughed. “I want to think of you as the little sister I never had, I’m gonna look out for you almost as good as Zack does.”

“Zack is a good guy, he totally kicked Alex’s ass after what he did.” I smiled at the thought, Zack was always there for me and I know that he always will be.

“You know what, let’s go out tomorrow night after the show.” Vic smiled. “It’ll be me, you, and the other dudes.” He pointed toward his bus. “And you can bring Jenna, it’ll be a blast.”

“Thanks Vic, I think I’ll take you up on that offer.” I laughed and we finished our food.

Notes