“Where are we going?” Meg asked for about the sixth time as Jack pulled her along the streets of New York.

“I told you it’s a SURPRISE!” Jack said, dragging out the ‘i’ as he tugged on Meg’s arm to turn the street corner. After five more minutes Jack and Meg arrived at the tour bus. Meg shot Jack a very confused look.

“Are you planning on abducting me? I COULD use a little vacation.” Meg joked, giving Jack a little wink.

“I just gotta pick up some stuff really quick!” Jack jumped onto the bus, and then came right back when he noticed that Meg was still standing outside. “Come on!! The guys don’t bite… but I can’t promise that everyone will have pants on.”

“It’s ok, I like a free show.” Meg wiggled her eyebrows as she walked onto the bus, following Jack, who quickly turned around after that comment. “KIDDING!”

They walked onto the bus to find it mostly empty. Alex was sitting on the couch mindlessly on his phone with a bowl of what looked like Lucky Charms in his lap. His hair was still messy. Danny was sitting on the bench at the table with his head on the table and a cup of coffee and Cheetos next to him. Then there was Vinny who was still passed out in the same spot he was on the floor when Jack left. Those three were the only ones left in the lounge and all seemed to still be suffering the effects of a massive hangover.

Jack stepped over Vinny, and into the hall where the bunks were. Meg began to follow, but Jack stopped and turned around. “Aye! This date is still a surprise, so no peaking at what I’m getting. Just wait on the couch and hang with Alex.” Jack was smiling, which made Meg happy and nervous because who knew what was going to happen today and what that skunk-haired man had planned.

Meg just walked over to the couch and sat next to Alex. Not too close, but close enough for Alex to feel the dip in the couch, making him jump about two feet in the air. Meg just had to laugh because seriously, how did he not notice her and Jack enter the bus? When Alex realized who was sitting next to him he just smiled and asked, “Have any cures for a hangover?”

She laughed, “Uh… don’t get drunk?”

“Well… too late for that,” Alex said lowly as he got back to his phone. A second later his phone began to ring on its highest volume, earning groans from Vinny and Danny. Alex saw who it was and the biggest smile spread across his face. He put the phone up to his ear and answered groggily, “Hey, babe.”

“OH NO! Do NOT ‘Hey, babe’ me!!” Meg was sitting close enough to hear her cousin on the other end losing her shit and screaming at Alex, but Meg couldn’t make out the words.

“Woah, woah, woah! What did I do?” Alex asked, completely worried he did something stupid while he was drunk the night before.

“Oh it’s not you, it’s your DUMBASS lanky friend, Jack!! Seriously?! My cousin goes to one of your concerts right after having her heart broken and Jack thinks that it’s ok to fucking hit on her, lead her on, and then COMPLETELY STAND HER UP?!?! I GET OFF STAGE AFTER THE BEST SHOW ALL YEAR TO HEAR THAT YOUR BEST FRIEND IS FUCKING WITH MY COUSIN’S HEART?!?!” Tay was screaming at the top of her lungs, and Meg moved a little bit closer to try to figure out what was going on.

Alex was completely flustered, trying to figure out what to say. He was still pretty hungover and didn’t know how to calm down his girlfriend. Alex could only bearly make out the words Tay was screaming at him and tried to figure out what was actually happening. “Tay, take deep breaths, I can bearly understand you. Now, whatever is wrong I’m sure we’ll be able to fix. So babe, why are you so mad?”

Alex listened to what his girlfriend was saying on the other end, nodding, humming in agreement, and then finally laughing. “No... Tay… you don’t have the whole story… Jack’s an idiot… I know you know that, but he just had a hair malfunction, and while running around like a moron he lost track of time…. No, she’s here right now… Yeah…” Alex turned to Meg and handed her the phone, “Here, Tay wants to tell you something.”

Meg took the phone and put it to her ear, “Hey, Tay.”

“So you’re ok now? You know I don’t like when guys try to mess with you,” Tay said sternly, completely overprotective of her cousin.

“Yeah, everything’s ok. Jack’s getting some stuff and then we’re off. Sorry for worrying you.” Meg felt really bad that she worried Tay so much, but was really touched that her cousin cared so much.

“Alright. I just don’t want you getting hurt. But if Jack does hurt you, I’ll have Zack kill him.” Tay and Meg both laughed at the joke, even though Tay was completely serious. “Meg, I gotta go, can you put Alex back on for a second? I’ll talk to you soon, love you!”

“Love you too!” and with that Meg handed Alex his phone back.

“Hey…. Yeah… I know how he can get…. No I won’t let that happen…. Yeah I’ll make sure…. Ok, yeah I understand. I’ll call you later?... Love you too. Bye!” Alex ended the call just as Jack entered the room.

“Who was that?” Jack asked as he carried an overpacked backpack that looked like it was about to burst.

“Oh just Tay, checking in.” Meg answered quickly, not wanting to make Jack feel any worse about being late. She already forgave him, but he kept apologizing and seemed to feel really bad about it. “So where are we headed, Backpack Boy?”
Jack just laughed at Meg’s persistent effort. “I told you, it’s a surprise!!”

Meg just turned to Alex, “So where is he taking me?” hoping that the man’s best friend would have an idea on where their day would take the two.

Alex just shrugged, “No clue. Jack didn’t tell me shit, even if he did last night I wouldn’t remember.”

Jack took Meg’s hand and pulled her to her feet. “Come on! I have a LOT planned!!” Jack practically ran out of the bus, dragging Meg along with him, not even saying goodbye to Alex, Vinny, or Danny.

Jack and Meg were in Central Park, where Jack was now paying for a tandem bike to rent for the day. The man at the bike rental gave the two helmets and told Jack to be back by no later than 6. Jack turned around, pushing the bike with him and looked at Meg, “Jeez, that man sounds like my mother,” Jack lowered his voice and put on a thick New York accent, “’Don’t leave the pawk.’ ‘Be back befawr six, and won’ ‘ave an issue.’ ‘If you get cawt withou’ a helmet, yoo’ll be foined.’ ‘Stay awn da the path, too.’”

Meg started cracking up, “Your mom is an old man from Brooklyn?” She took the blue helmet from Jack, leaving him with the bright pink helmet.

“HEY! Why do you get the blue helmet?” Jack whined, but laughing at the same time.

“’Cause the blue one matches my outfit.” Meg said as she twirled around to show Jack how the helmet and her outfit worked quite well together.

“Fine, but only because you look cute in the blue one,” Jack huffed. “Wait! What about my hair?!”

Megan tried not to laugh at this comment, but failed. “Your hair will be fine!” Jack didn’t want to look ridiculous, so against his better judgment he strapped on the bright pink helmet. “There! You look like a pretty princess!” Meg said as she planted a small peck on Jack’s cheek, making his face go the color of the helmet.

Jack tried to quickly avert Megan’s attention to the bike, “So… How does this thing work?”

Megan giggled at Jack’s question. “You rented the bike with no clue how to ride one?”

Jack went pink again and forced a laugh. “I know how to ride a bike!! But how does THIS one work?”

Meg stopped laughing and looked at the bike again. “Uh… I guess we just both pedal at the same time.”

Jack cocked his head as he looked at it. “Well… we could try… we’ve got our helmets so we won’t die. You sit in the front so my big head doesn’t block your vision.”

Megan brought her leg around the bike so she was straddling the bike, but not sitting on it. “I guess but I hope you know that I might run us into a lake or something.” She laughed, but got no response from Jack. She turned around to see a smirk on Jack’s face as he was staring at her ass. “Hey! Barakat!! Are you checking me out?”

Jack was pulled from his thoughts and blushed, feeling really bad he got caught. “Oh gosh, sorry! I just- I-“

Jack was stuttering like a fool, but Meg just laughed, making him feel even more nervous. “Jack! It’s ok! It’s actually kinda flattering. Like a pervy cute!” Meg was trying to lighten the mood, because she felt bad she always made Jack so nervous.

He forced a laugh and tried to play it off cooly. “You know… I have that effect.”

“Totally,” Meg said chuckling again, “Now get on so we can begin our mighty adventure while trying not to die.”

Jack got onto the bike. “Ok, so I guess we’ll go on the count of three? You ready?”

“Yeah” Meg put her right foot on the pedal ready to push off, and balancing with the left foot on the ground.

Jack put up the kickstand and counted down. “One. Twooo. Three!”

They both pushed off at the same time and began to pedal. The two had trouble balancing and began swerving left and right.

“Woah! Woooahhh!” Meg said as she tried to get used to steering. But soon they both got used to the bike and rode around the park with the wind in their face and the birds singing.

They both had giant smiles on their faces, though neither one could see the other. “Hey, this is pretty cool! AND we’re not dead yet!” Jack was having so much fun, a fun completely new to him. It was a fun that gave him a tickle in his stomach and put a smile on his face that he just couldn’t stop.

The two biked on, not really holding a conversation, just happy biking along with the beautiful scenery in each other’s company. They were riding for a long time, passing baseball fields, playgrounds, runners with dogs, elderly men playing chess, and one particular couple that just got engaged. They turned right and soon there was a tiny little lake that was in the shade and quite secluded. Jack called out to Meg, “Hey, let’s stop here for a sec.”

“Uh, ok.” Meg didn’t know what she was doing, she pressed on the hand breaks, a little too hard and the bike stopped suddenly. They both weren’t ready and fell off the bike, tumbling onto the grass.

Jack moved the bike away and turned quickly to Meg. “Oh fuck, are you ok?”

Megan was laughing really hard as she sat up. “Ye-yeah, are you?”

Jack was a little confused. Megan wasn’t like any girl Jack’s ever been with. Most girls would be worrying about what they looked like, mad that they got dirty, or just pissed off Jack wasn’t Superman or something and caught them. So he smiled, pretty surprised. “Uh, yeah.” Jack started to laugh too because Megan’s was really contagious, it just made him so happy he had to laugh too. Jack got up to his feet, wiped off his pants and then extended his hand to help Meg up.

Jack fixed his backpack back onto his back and then picked up the bike. “Come on, I think I found the perfect spot.” Jack’s smile beamed he walked the bike away from the path.

“Perfect spot for what?” Megan was completely confused, and didn’t know where Jack was walking toward. Megan bent down to pick up her sunglasses that fell off of her face, take off her helmet, and fix her hair really quick. “Wait! Don’t forget about me!” Megan ran to the direction Jack walked off to, who seemed to disappear very quickly. She found him under a tree that faced the lake setting up a blanket.

Jack stood near the tree, really excited for what he had planned and motioned Meg to come closer. “Come here and sit! I have some stuff for us.”

Meg couldn’t help but blush as she moved her hair behind her ear and walked over to Jack. He motioned for her to sit down and Jack sat next to her, pulling his backpack from the grass to his side. “What’s all this?” Meg asked excitedly as she saw Jack rummage through his bag, which looked a little less full, but still huge.

“Well, I thought that if I take you out on a date that I should at least feed you. So… our own private lake to eat at.” Jack was smiling and then took out a candle from his bag along with a lighter. “Hazelnut roasted coffee scented candle, courtesy of Sir Rian Dawson.” Jack lit the candle and then whispered to Meg, “But don’t tell him I took it, he doesn’t know.” Jack went looking through the bag again, soon he found what he was looking for and pulled it out, “Pacific Cooler Capri Sun, for the lovely lady.” Jack put the straw into the juice pack, his hands shaking, making it harder than it really should be for a twenty-something year old man. He bowed his head and handed Meg her Capri Sun.

“Why thank you my good sir,” Meg said as she took the juice pack and took a sip.

“For our main course we have a lovely choice between peanut butter and sugar or Nutella sandwiches.” Jack pulled out a huge mound of tin foil.

“My favorite! How’d you know that I LOVE peanut butter and sugar!!” Meg was practically squealing with happiness. “Everyone thinks it’s gross, but it’s basically what I lived off of when I was little and all through college.”

Jack was really happy he decided to make the obscure sandwiches. “Well, Tay made me one, and I thought it was really good. I thought that maybe you’d like ‘em too since maybe she made one for you. I wasn’t sure ‘cause no one but me likes it. They’re kinda crushed, so I don’t know if they’re actually gonna-“

Meg hugged Jack tight and kissed him on the cheek, trying to silence him, “Shh! It’s perfect.”

“Really?” Jack was surprised that his lame idea of a picnic was actually good.

“Really.” Meg said, smiling even more than Jack, if that was even possible. She unwrapped the tinfoil to reveal seven barely crushed sandwiches. Meg picked up two halves of a peanut butter and sugar sandwich and handed one half to Jack. “Bon Apetite!” and with that they both dug in.

After about half an hour there was only half a Nutella sandwich and they went through about six Capri Suns in total. Jack went through his bag that looked almost empty and pulled out a container of Chips Ahoy. “And for dessert.” He opened the Chips Ahoy pack, which was only half full, and handed Meg a cookie.

“Thanks. This was really amazing, Jack. You really didn’t have to do all of this, it’s really too sweet.” Meg was just completely blown away at how hard Jack was trying, and how careful he was trying to be not to mess anything up. It was really obvious, even to Megan.

“Meg, I WANT to do all of this. But it’s not even enough. I feel really fucking bad about being late, I feel like a total ass. I wish I could’ve made this more special, but I kinda had tour bus food to work with.” Jack was really happy that Megan was having a great time on their date, but Jack still felt like it wasn’t good enough for someone as special as Meg. He wasn’t really used to doing things like this, and he wasn’t sure if what he was doing was right.

“Jack this is so perfect. It’s the best date I’ve ever been on. I told you I’m not upset about you being a little late. You’re seriously going too out of your way just for me.” Meg felt like she didn’t deserve all of this special attention. She wasn’t used to guys going out of their way to make her happy, but she would be lying if she said she wasn’t enjoying every time Jack went out of his way to make Meg happy.

“Well then obviously you weren’t going out with the right guys. You should be treated like this all the time. BUT our adventure is not over, young one. We still have more to see. So come, as we continue our journey!!” Jack hopped up and then helped up Meg.

“More?! Well, then we MUST continue!” Meg said as she played along with Jack.

“But we must hurry!” Jack exclaimed as he bent down to blow out the candle. Jack started putting the uneaten cookies and juice in his bag along with the lighter and candle.

“Ooo! Jack, look!” Meg cried pointing out a family of ducks on the little lake. “I’m gonna go see if I can feed them the rest of this Nutella sandwich.” Megan grabbed the last half of the sandwich and walked toward the pond, careful not to scare the ducks away.


Jack folded up the blanket and put it into his bag and then gathered up the tinfoil and empty juice packs. He picked up his bag and walked over to Meg, leaving the bike up against the tree. “Hey, I’m just gonna throw this out then I’ll come back. I wanna watch the ducks too.”

Meg just nodded as she tried to coax the ducks to come closer, luring them in with the food. Jack remembered seeing a garbage right around the path so he jogged towards the path so he could get back to Meg as soon as possible. He spotted the garbage and ran to throw out what remained from the picnic. When he turned around he saw a guy standing right behind him. The guys looked to be about a little younger than Jack whose hair resembled Tom Delonge’s from 2003. The guy was smiling at Jack, so either he was a fan or really happy to throw out trash.

No matter how many times Jack met fans, the ones that just stood there and stared made him feel really awkward. “Oh. Hi.” Jack said, trying to see if the guy actually wanted to talk to him.

“Hi, I’m a huge fan. Would you mind if I got a picture?” The guy looked ecstatic to be meeting Jack, so how could he deny just one picture?

“Sure.”

The guy took out his phone and held it arm’s length away. Jack stuck out his tongue and the held up his hands into the “Rock On!” sign.

“Thanks, dude.” The guy said as he looked at the picture he just took.

“Welcome. Did you come see us yesterday?” Jack asked, knowing that he should get back to Meg, but interested to see if this kid saw the concert.

“No. I had tickets but I couldn’t go.” The guy looked really bitter and Jack regretted asking the question.

“Oh that sucks. Well, there’s always next time right?” Jack tried to make the guy feel better, but he kinda sucked at it. “But I should get back. It was nice to meet you.”

“Oh yeah. Thanks for the picture. But do you think I could get a picture with the rest of the band?” the guy asked excitedly.

“Oh, I’m sorry, man. I’m not here with the rest of the guys. I’m actually on a date.” Jack said, feeling kind of bad that the guy couldn’t meet the rest of the guys.

“Oh shit. Sorry I had no idea. Yeah you have a nice- Is that? Shit.” The guy noticed someone walking in their direction. “Why is that bitch walking over here? Dammit.”

“Well, I should go.” Jack said not wanting to get in the middle of whatever was going to start.

Meg was running towards him with the bike, she was smiling and her hair was flowing in the wind. Her smile fell when she noticed the guy standing behind Jack. Meg walked past Jack and up to the guy. Tears were welling up in her eyes, and he was clenching his fists.

“What the fuck are you doing here, Tom?”