(4) Out of Control: An All Time Low FanFiction Romance

Chapter 45: Boyfriend

        "Thank you so much, Boston, it's great being home!" Xavier breathed into the microphone, flipping his hair out of his eyes. I couldn't wipe the smile off of my face. It was bigger than I'd ever had before, and I could almost feel my cheek bones bulging out of the sides of my face.

        It'd been our dream to perform at The House of Blues, and we were doing it. It was the best fucking feeling in the entire world.

        "Thank you for making this the best performance of our entire tour, you guys are so fucking amazing!" I said, setting my mic back on its stand. I tugged at the side of my black, magenta, white and blue floral skirt, flipping my hair over one side of my head. "Good night, Boston!"

        The lights dimmed greatly while I bowed my head in routine, hearing the screams and squeals of our hometown fans, the ones with us since our first performance downtown, the same people with the most energy for us on tour.

        We were ushered off the stage for the setup of The Summer Set and were led straight to our merch table. We had a signing today too, mostly because we were from here. I was surprised to see how many people were lined up by our tables where we'd sit for the next ninety minutes. There had to be at least fifty people with our EP in their hands, eager expressions etched onto their mouths.

        There was some screaming, and I felt my heart swell when we waved, and it gained another roar of yelling in our direction. For the first time since tour started, I was starting to feel like a rockstar. And no one could bring down my mood in this moment.

        I pulled at the fron tof my black, lace shirt, feeling it sticking to my skin. It was humid, even with the doors open to let in the cooler, spring air. I was only bothered for a moment while I sat down, because the first group of girls began by asking for pictures and autographs, barely able to make out a complete sentence because they were stuttering so much.

        And the cycle continued with girls who swooned over the boys, or the few guys who stood a little too close while taking pictures. We stood slowly, stretching and joking around with the few fans who made us gifts that were now stored in empty merch boxers, going back to the bus for safe keeping.

        Mid-yawn, I heard a voice. It was almost easy to miss with all the noise around us, but I heard it. It was so familiar, one I'd heard a hundred times before, and I wasn't sure I could forget it if I tried.

        I looked up, meeting a memorable set of light eyes from ten feet away. It looked like he'd just arrived, still dry and neatly put together in a plaid button-up shirt and jeans. My eyes went wide, almost forgetting he said he'd be here. I ran my fingers through my hair, giving him a smile.

        He didn't seem to mind closing the gap between our bodies, moving around the table to wrap his arms around me in a tight hug. It was hard to read his expression, only a tiny grin on his mouth while he pulled away, meeting my gaze with a soft expression.

        "How are you?" he asked, hand finding my elbow, keeping our bodies close. I lifted my hend from his hold, running it through my hair before crossing it over my chest lightly. He didn't seem to catch the hint, because his smile never faltered.

        "I'm really, really great. How about you?" I offered, pretending to preoccupy myself by moving closer to Kinsley, refolding shirts slowly.

        "I've been alright," I could see him shrug from the corner of my eyes. I nodded, biting my lip with my attention focused on the shirts. "I've missed seeing you around. Dunkin' Donuts gets boring without you guys coming in."

        I let out a deep breath, wishing he hadn't gone there. How many times did I tell him I wasn't interested? In how many different ways could I spell it out that I didn't want him, and probably never would? Why was he always the one coming back to me? I never treated him fairly to begin with, I wasn't sure why he was even wasting his breath at this point.

        "Really? I've hardly noticed we were gone," I said, forcing a laugh. I didn't want to have to tell him off right now, in front of fans and bystanders.

        "Well, you're home for good, right?" he asked, eyes meeting mine once again, hopeful. I sighed, setting the t-shirt down, leaning my weight on the palm I had pressed against it.

        I opened my mouth, but I felt someone's hand touch the small of my back. It was easy for me to tell who it was, his cool fingertips moving slowly against my skin in a pattern I only knew as Jack's.

        "They're recording a CD for almost the entire summer," he said easily, like he was part of the conversation the whole time. I looked up at my side, glancing at the casual expression etched onto his mouth. "And they're not sure what their plans are afterwards."

        "Who are you?" Hunter asked with a sudden hint of hostility in his tone. I saw the way his eyes travelled to the proximity of our bodies, and Jack's hand, which was still touching my back.

        "Jack Barakat. I'm.." he trailed off, unsure of where to take the next part of the sentence. My head perked up, lips showing a small smile. Hunter would just have to understand this the hard way.

        "My boyfriend," I said quickly, hitting my hip against his to give him the hint. I knew he understood by the chuckle that left his mouth, hand curling to the shape of my hip to further the point. "Yeah, my point."

        "Boyfriend?" Hunter's voice was far off, and angry. I could see the frustration flicker in his eyes, mouth pulling into a straight line. I could almost see his shoulders turn to ice, the blood boiling in his cheeks. "Since when do you do anything with a guy besides fuck him?"

        I should have expected that, it was always the same lines he threw at me when we'd get heated. It was something I'd gotten used to years ago, but it still left that tiny, tiny twist in my stomach that disappeared quickly.

        "I don't know. I didn't mean for it to happen, it just did," I said, unable to find half the words. It was hard for me to lie on the spot. I was always so used to just telling the truth because lying was always the cheap way of getting out of kids.

        I didn't want to hurt his feelings, I never really wanted to. It just got to the point where I had nowhere else to turn. He wouldn't move on and I was already so far past him I would probably never go back. I didn't want to have a boy trailing behind me that way. It was baggage I just didn't want. If I had to make up some insane lie for him to understand whatever kind of relationship we had was over, I needed to do it.

        "Who are you? I don't think Nat's told me about you before," Jack started, reaching out his hand for an introduction.

        I was almost surprised at how fast he caught on and how well he was playing along. But, he was acting the part perfectly. Maybe he felt bad for me, and wanted to help. Maybe he really didn't like Hunter from just meeting him and wanted him out of here. For whatever reason, I was happy he was faking it so well.

        "No one, apparently," Hunter mumbled, shaking his head and turning on his heel. I didn't say anything else when he walked away. I never did. There was absolutely nothing I could do to keep us friends and fix whatever was between us. It was one or another and I learned that a long time ago.

        The small pang of guilt was the only thing I really felt, but it never lasted. Just the same as all other boys, it was gone by the time I lost the back of his head in the crowd.