Mended Hearts x Revised

Chapter Twelve

FYI : Just a heads up...this will be a longer chapter. Sorry not sorry!

Annie's POV

The tour bus pulls into the parking lot, as I stand next to Emily. While the rest of my girl friends were busy arguing, I'd grown closer to her. She was really understanding and didn't care about who I was dating.
"I'm surprised Jack didn't insist on coming." She jokes, rubbing her arms to keep warm. I laugh, "He wanted to but they still needed him and Asher on the Shazam set. After the first stop though, he's joining us on the bus." She nods, "Ah, that makes sense. I knew he'd manage to find a way to tag along."
I smile, "I wonder when they'll release our tv show." She shrugs, "Hopefully soon." We both shiver, trying to stay warm as we wait for the managers to appear. We're not allowed to board until all the managers are here.
Johnny is standing with Lauren and his mom, Mer. Hayden is with his dad, but he's on his phone. My mom had to stay with Hayley because they're still filming Mani. So, Emily and I are on our own. Well, not really. Mrs.Orlando promised to keep an eye on us.
"Annie." Emily says, nudging me. I look up and see my manager approach us, along with the other managers. "Are you ready to kick off the tour?" Sally cheerfully exclaims. I force a smile, while my teeth chatter and I struggle to stay warm. It's literally 30° and I just want to board the bus.
Luckily, they finally let us board and get settled. Emily and I claim seats towards the back, setting down our bags. "Hey, got room for a few more?" I look up and see Kenzie, Austin, Issak, and...Will?
The managers smile, which lets me know they must have planned about this. "We couldn't let you have all the fun by yourselves." Issak jokes, as he helps Kenzie up. She smiles gratefully before coming over to hug me. "How you doing?" She whispers, glancing at Lauren and Johnny.
I shrug, "Better, I guess. Still not quite on speaking terms with everyone but we're getting there." She nods and sits down across from Emily and I. Issak slides in next to her, flashing me a smile.
Austin slides in next to Issak, as there's still a little room left on the seat. Will slides in next to me, grinning, "Surprised?" I grin back, "Maybe just a little."
I catch Johnny's eyes as he looks at us longingly. He sighs and looks away, so I swallow my pride, "Want to join us?" He gratefully smiles and makes his way back, leaving Lauren and Hayden with the adults.
He pauses, not sure where to sit. I'm wedged between Emily and Will, so there's no room left with us. Kenzie, Austin, and Issak are already a tight fit so he's not fitting in there, either.
"Ok, let me out William." He rolls his eyes, "Why must you insist on using my full name?" I shrug, "Because it's fun to aggravate you."
I pat his shoulder, "You'd never admit it, but you know you like your full name." He grumbles, sliding over to let me out. I just laugh as I sit down next to Johnny. "Hey." I say.
He smiles, "Hey." Luckily, it's not awkward between us. Despite our friends and their pressuring opinions, we're still us. Best friends and nothing more...well, not yet. I still haven't decided between Carson and Johnny. Deep down, I know it's Johnny but something is holding me back.
I don't want to hurt Carson, nor do I want to offend him. Everything that my Maryland friends said was true. I still love Johnny and I never really stopped. It's just...complicated. He's my best friend and I'm worried if we break up, then our friendship will be ruined. It's happened once, it could happen again.
But, I don't want to lose him again. So, that's why I'm holding back. Because of my fear. It may seem ridiculous but I'd rather stay friends than risk ruining what we already have. But, deep down...I know I want to be with him. I want him to be mine and I want to be his. I just need to get over my fears. Easier said than done.
"So...when will I get to hear this duet? Hayden told me it's supposed to be real good." Kenzie teases. I smile, "Soon. You'll probably hear us rehearsing before our first show tonight." Johnny grins, "Ready for our first meet and greet?"
I laugh, "Yep. I can't wait to see all our fans." I smirk, "You'll be getting a lot of hugs and kisses tonight." He groans, "Don't remind me. Last time, I had some girl's lipgloss on my face for the whole night."
"I won't be the only one with admirers though. I bet they'll be a few guys tonight who will try to shoot their shot." He teases. I shake my head, "Unless he's my type, I don't think he'll be getting my number."
Kenzie laughs, "Remember that one time we did a meet and greet together, Anns?" I fight back a smile, "I do." Johnny and Issak raise their eyebrows, "Should we be concerned?" The way Issak asks it makes me burst out laughing. "M-maybe." I say between giggles.
"We were posing for pictures when a guy came up and asked for Annie's number. Luke and Sydney were there too, and oh my goodness, Luke went all big brother on the poor guy." Kenzie manages to say between laughs.
I shake my head, tears running down my face because I'm laughing so hard, "I thought Luke was going to explode. We practically had to drag him away from the poor kid. Let's just say any male admirers of mine, kept their distance from me that day. They admired from afar...like from really far away."
When I finally compose myself, Emily smiles, "Hey, remember the set tour we did when we were still shooting the episodes for our show?" She glances at Will and I before grinning mischievously, "That is a story to tell."
Will chuckles as I shake my head, dissolving into giggles again. "We were beginning to wrap up shooting but our director decided to do a set tour. So, you got to meet the cast and get a tour of set." Emily begins, "Anyway, Will and Annie's characters are dating in the show and there was this little girl..."
I pick up where she leaves off, "She was such a big fan of Will which was adorable and anyway, we were filming a scene which they got to watch. It was a scene with our characters and..."
Smiling, Will finishes, "The little girl was so jealous of Annie. She thought we were really a couple and well, like I said she was jealous. She didn't like Annie because as she said, 'you stole my man.'" We all laugh, Johnny laughing the hardest.
"I would've loved to see that." He says. Will grins, "Well, it's your lucky day. Jack recorded it all so just ask him to show it to you. He'd be glad to."
"William Franklyn Miller," I say, "You're the worst." He winces, "Ouch. You used my full name." I try to glare but only end up laughing, "You deserved it."
We talk a little longer before I start to get sleepy. I don't think much about it as I rest my head on Johnny's shoulder. He glances at me but returns to talking to Will. I close my eyes and yawn, cuddling closer to him.

Emily's POV

I smile and glance over at Johnny and Annie. They're both asleep now, and they're cuddled up. She's curled into his side, with her head on his chest, his chin resting on top of her head. He fell asleep a little while after she did.
Before we left, Annie had confided in me that she liked Johnny. She admitted her fear of losing him again, which nearly broke my heart. She loves him so much, she's afraid of losing him. She doesn't want to hurt Carson, either.
My phone buzzes with a text from Asher. Hey Em, how are things going? How's Annie doing? I glance over at the two sleeping beauties, before replying to his text.
Annie is doing good...I guess. Will and I surprised her and so did her other friends, Kenzie and Isaak. I think they'll be ok, but I don't know. I pause, biting my lip. Asher, I think it's time you moved on. Annie is and would be happy with John. They're close and there's one thing stopping them from being together. Please don't make it two.
       I send the text, feeling selfish as I do. Is it really my fault that I like Asher and he's secretly in love with our best friend? I mean, I get that she can't help it and I love her to pieces, but why can't I just have Asher? She can have Johnny or Carson, but Asher? I'd do anything for Annie, but does life have to be this cruel?
       Do I have to sacrifice myself for her wellbeing? Asher hasn't told her how he feels, but he did tell Jack and I. He never told Will because he's too close with Annie. The two of them are like brother and sister, they tell each other every single thing. If he admitted how he felt, Will might accidentally tell Annie.
       I almost died when he told me how he felt, wishing he knew how I felt. But, I kept quiet and didn't tell him. Guess we both know how it feels to love someone who doesn't love you back.

      "Em?" I glance at over Will, forcing a smile. "Uh, yeah? What's up, Will?" He pauses before asking, "Are Annie and Johnny dating? I'm just curious because I want the best for her."
      I shake my head, "No, they're not. She's currently single and torn between two guys. There's her childhood best friend and her teenage years best friend. The one she loved first and the one she learned to love. The one who unintentionally hurt her and the one who made it better."
     He whistles softly, "That's rough," he glances at me before carefully continuing, "I've seen the way Asher looks at her, Em. I'm not a fool, I have eyes and I see things. Poor kid has more lovers than she knows what to do with."
     I make a face, "Lovers sounds gross. Don't use that word, Will. Besides, Asher and Annie would never work." He looks amused, "How so? I think they'd work perfectly."
     I sigh, "Well, they're too similar. Both of them would do anything for their friends, which means they'd do anything for each other. It sounds cute but it's not, they'd be sacrificing themselves in order to protect the other. There needs to be a healthy balance and I think that they'd slowly lose themselves while trying to be everything for each other. Besides, while Asher is head over heels for her, Annie is all over Johnny."
     My hands fly up to my mouth, as I realize I revealed both of their secrets and that my words were so cruel and harsh. Will's eyes widen and his eyebrows fly up. "Wait, you're telling me that my best mate is in love with my closest girl friend?"
    I bite my lip, "Well, technically yes. But, you can't tell a single soul! I wasn't supposed to tell you either thing, but it just slipped out. Promise me that you'll never tell?" He sighs, "I won't make a promise I can't keep..."

   
ꕥ 𝚂𝚎𝚌𝚛𝚎𝚝𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎...𝚘𝚑 𝚖𝚢! ꕥ
♥︎ 𝚡𝚘, 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚊 ♥︎