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

Chapter 61: My Fault

        "Where's Zave?" I asked as I left the bathroom, tilting my head to the side as I scrunched my wet hair in a towel to squeeze out some of the excess moisture. I was trying to keep most of my hair from dampening my t-shirt before I could find a elastic to pull it up in.

        It was late Saturday night, and after a long week in the studio, wanting to rip my hair out over a song that I couldn't write, I was happy to have a small break tomorrow. We weren't going to the studio until late morning, giving us a few extra hours to sleep in. I was looking forward to those few precious hours of sleep, not having to see Jack and not worrying about that damn song.

        "Out, getting some beer and food," Porter said, eyes fixing on the tv, leaning deep into the leather recliner. Maverick was sitting a few feet away, slouched into the leather sofa, his feet propped up on the coffee table, a bag of chips in his lap.

        "Don't we have both of those?" I asked, walking into my bedroom to hang my towel on the door and grab an elastic, flipping my hair over to pull it into a bun on top of my head.

        "Yeah, but we're having some people over so we needed more," I heard Maverick say, picking my head up in time to see Porter giving him a death glare.

        "Like who?" I asked sowly, cautiously, even though I was sure I knew the answer. We didn't exactly know a lot of people in LA. I stood in the doorway, eyes flickering between Porter's and Maverick's faces.

        "Just a few people," Maverick shrugged. "Yahno, Alex and Stella, Zack and Lauren, Rian, Jack, and maybe a few from the studio," he said, voice dropping at the last name on the list.

        "Just for the record, it was Mav's idea," Porter chimed in, picking himself off of the recliner. Maverick stared at him incredulously as Porter walked towards me. "He invited them over. I told him he'd get his balls chopped off, but he thought once you finished the song after seeing Jack you wouldn't be so pissed."

        "This is about the fucking song?!" I exclaimed, eyes shooting to Maverick as Porter disappeared into his room.

        "I was just trying to help!" Maverick yelped, jumping off of the couch as I walked towards him.

        "I toldyou it was a fucking dumb idea!" I screamed, grabbing for him. My fingers latched onto his t-shirt before he could get away and I tackled him onto the couch, punching his arms.

        "Ow, shit Nat, I'm sorry!" he exclaimed, grabbing my hands so I couldn't punch him again.

        "I swear to God, I'm going to fucking kill you," I growled, trying to wrestle out of his grip. He ended up pushing me onto the floor, my tailbone hitting the ground, momentarily stunning me with pain. In that time, Maverick jumped up, moving away from me, while the door to the apartment opened, allowing a flood of voices to enter the space. I glared at Maverick as I stood up, flicking him off before turning to walk into my room without looking in the direction of Xavier and the group of people.

        I swung the door shut, hard enough where I thought it closed without my help, but not hard enough to create a loud slam. Still, as I pulled my hair from the bun it was falling out of, I didn't hear the sound I was expecting of the door hitting the frame and closing. I shifted my gaze, fingering the elastic in my hand as my eyes landed on Jack's frame, his arm behind him to shut the door. I listened to it click into place, along with the lock, and my heart started to race with nerves and anger. I turned away, stubbornly not meeting his gaze, my eyes on the opposite wall.

        "Just because Maverick was stupid enough to think something would happen doesn't mean it's going to. I'm going to give you five seconds to get the fuck out of my room," I said, triyng to keep my voice calm.

        "Why can't we just talk, Nat?" He questioned. I could hear him taking slow steps towards me.

        "Because I don't want to. I thought we covered this already?" I said, impatient and annoyed. "Have you not understood that we're done? Do I need to literally spell it out for you? We're done, Jack. Whatever we had or didn't have, or what you thought we had, is done." I spun around to face him, surprised at how close he'd actually gotten.

        "No, it's not," he shook his head, still moving towards me. "I'm not stupid enough to believe that's what you actually want."

        "It is what I want. Why else would I be saying it to you?" I questioned, feeling myself back up, but the wall was behind me and I couldn't move anymore. I bit down on my lip, hating the rush of mixed feelings that came swarming back at his close proximity.

        "Because, you're scared, and I know that. I know that it's fucking killing you to act like you don't care about me beacuse it's the first time it's ever happened and you have no idea how to handle it," He accused, less than a foot away. "Didn't we have this conversation already? How long is it going to take for you to just deal with it?"

        "You don't know a damn thing about me or about how I feel," I said angirly, feeling myself glare at him. Jack just smirked, like he honestly knew something I didn't.

        "I think I do. I did hear that song, it's good so far. It's even better that it's written about me," he grinned.

        "It's not about you," I replied quickly.

        "You can keep telling yourself that," He said quietly, still smirking as he stopped in front of me, less than an inch away. As much as I wanted to, I didn't protest at the feeling of his fingers on my waist, trailing around the edge of my shirt, fingers burhsing against the skin of my waist.

        His proximity was driving me insane, and I was sure he knew it. He moved leisurely, his head ducking closer, slowly, the grin twitching on his lips until they touched mine. In that moment, I broke.        

        I let my arms wrap completely around his neck, pulling his mouth closer to mine as my back hit the wall. Jack's mouth moved easily against mine, his fingers taunting as they moved the hem of my shirt further up my stomach, esposing the flesh up to my belly button. My thoughts were like a tornado in my head, crashing around and pulling me in two different directions.

        Jack's mouth moved away from mine, trailing across my jawline and my neck, giving me a second to breathe and a moment to think. The moment his lips traveled to mine again, I found it in me to raise my hands, palms pushing flat against his chest, moving Jack away from me.

        "Stop," I muttered, pushing his body away from me. "I mean it, I'm done."

        "Nat, stop with this bullshit. Why are you trying so fucking hard to push me away?" he quetioned, sounding less angry, but confused. The change of tone was almost enough.

        "I just can't do it," I said quietly, knowing that I wasn't convincing either of us. "Just get out, okay? Please, just go away."

        Jack sighed in front of me, shaking his head softly as he backed away a few steps before turning. I tugged at the edge of my shirt as he walked, pulling it down to my waist as Jack swung the dor open. For a moment, I heard the sounds of everyone outside, talking and laughing, and then it was muffled with the door slamming heavily shut. I jumped slightly at the sound, pressing my lips together in a tight line as I leaned back against the wall.

        I was angry at Maverick for inviting Jack over in the first place. I was mad at Jack for his persistence. I was pissed at myself because I knew everything was my fault.