Mended Hearts x Revised

Alec Benjamin & Annie

a/n: this is cute lil' filler chapter! so enjoy this special "bonding " moment between Johnny & Annie

    After finishing the rehearsal and attending a short meeting, the two teens were done for the day. Johnny was on his phone when Annie approached him.
    "Hey," she smiled, "I had a question for you." He glanced up at her and gave her a half smile, as he waited for her to continue.
    She paused before saying, "I know you have no clue who Alec Benjamin is." He blinked in surprise, "Wait, what?" She shrugged, "It was pretty obvious. You had this confused look on your face when your manager mentioned it."
     Before he could protest or defend himself, she continued, "Why don't we listen to a few of his songs tonight? I can give you some pointers on 'Let me down slowly' and you can become more familiar with his style. Once you hear one of his songs, you have to listen to more."
      Johnny smiled, "Ok. That sounds great." She nodded and then said, "I have some things to do but when I'm ready I'll text you. You can come over to our place later tonight." He nodded and she gave him a small smile, walking away from him.

      Johnny checked the text once more before knocking on the apartment door. He waited and hoped he'd gotten the address right. The door swung open and Hayley looked up at him, tilting her head to the side as she inspected him.
      She turned and yelled, "Johnny Orlando is here! Should I get Tayler to chase him away?" He heard a muffled reply and footsteps, as Hayley continued to stare at him.
      "I invited him over, Hay. There's no need to get Tayler...he'd tear John to pieces and I'd hate to explain that." Annie said, as she joined her sister. She shook her head and smiled sheepishly, "Come on in, John."
      He nodded and followed her inside, wondering if he should be worried. After telling Hayley to go back upstairs, Annie led him into the kitchen and they sat down at the kitchen island.
      She shook her head and smiled, "Sorry about that." He shrugged and rested his arms on the counter, "Nah, I get it. Protective older brother? I act the same way with Lauren."
Annie tucked her brown hair behind her ears and then opened her laptop. "So, I guess we should just start with the basics." She motioned for him to move closer, so he could see the screen.
He moved closer but left a small gap between them. She clicked on the first video and smiled, "We've got to start with 'If We Have Each Other'. It's one of his best songs."
She hummed along and he concentrated on looking between her and the screen. He tapped his foot along to the rhythm and found himself humming along. Even though he didn't totally know the tune or the lyrics.
Annie glanced at him and smiled softly, "This is fun. It reminds me of old times...like when we'd listen to Ed Sheeran or Taylor Swift or One Direction. I forced you to listen and you did."
He grinned, "You forgot the most important musician of all. Your beloved Justin Bieber." She gasped and shoved him away, laughing despite her mock outrage.
They listened to a few more Alec Benjamin songs before he suggested they listen to something else. So they could take a quick break. "Can I pick?" He asked.
She nodded and he looked for the familiar song. The melody filled the room and he saw her face soften, as she sang along. "Baby, I'm dancing in the dark with you between my arms. Barefoot on the grass, we're listenin' to our favorite song. When you said you looked a mess, I whispered underneath my breath. But you heard it, darling, you look perfect tonight."
He joined in, "We are still kids, but we're so in love. Fightin' against all odds, I know we'll be alright this time. Darling, just hold my hand. Be my girl, I'll be your man, I see my future in your eyes." She smiled at him and he smiled back.

/ Flashback /

Two young kids sat inside a tent, listening to music on an iPod. As a soft melody filled the air, the young girl closed her eyes and softly sang along. It was Ed Sheeran and one of her favorite songs.
Her friend glanced at her and listened to the words. He watched as she swayed along to the music, still singing softly. "Darling you look perfect tonight..."
When the music faded away, she fell back on her sleep bag and dreamily said, "That's the song I'm walking down the aisle to when I get married."
"You mean when you marry me," her friend teased. She rolled her eyes playfully, "No silly! I-I'm gonna marry someone who loves me. You only like me. Besides we're best friends."
He shrugged, "So? How do you know I don't love you?" She glanced at him, "Because you're my best friend. I don't think you can marry your best friend."
She closed her eyes and softly said, "Caleb is gonna marry Sydney and I think I'll marry Luke." Her friend made a face, "But Luke is your friend!"
The young girl sat up, "Well, he's not my best friend. So, it works." Her friend frowned, "But what if I want to marry you?"
"If you want to marry me, then you have to prove it. You have to love me." She replied. He tilted his head to the side, "How?"
She shrugged, "Figure it out. If you love me then you'll find a way to show me." He thought for a few seconds, "If I get you a ring will you marry me?"
The girl paused before saying, "I guess so." The boy got up and grabbed his things, running out of the tent. "Where are you going?" She called.
"To get you a ring!" He called back. She shrugged and gathered up her things, heading back inside. Her brother was sitting in the living room, when she got back.
He turned to her, "You're back early." She nodded and he asked her why. "Johnny is getting me a ring so I'll marry him," she replied.
Caleb jumped off the couch, "You're not marrying him!" His sister giggled and grinned, "No, of course not! He's my best friend and you don't marry your best friend."
Her brother shrugged, "Sydney is my best friend and I want to marry her." His sister looked confused, "But why would I marry Johnny? I like Luke."
"I don't know but you're not marrying anyone until you're older." He replied. She sighed, "Fine. But I am going to get married and it'll be to someone I love. Just like how you love Sydney."
The two siblings talked some more while the girl's best friend was trying to convince his older sister to loan him one of her rings. In the end, he would save his money and give her a ring a few years later. One which she would cherish for many years to come. Neither one of them forgot that night in the tent, nor did they forget the significance of that song. Perfect, by Ed Sheeran.

/ End of Flashback /

Later that night, the teens fell asleep on the couch, listening to Alec Benjamin. His song, 'If We Have Each Other' played in the background, as they curled up together and slept.
When Tayler came downstairs to get a glass of water, he spotted them on the couch. Instead of waking them up, he grabbed a blanket and placed it over them. He smiled to himself and walked into the kitchen, finding a mess of scattered papers on which the teens had written comments about the songs. They'd taken notes and left them on the table.
He spotted a few pictures sitting on the counter. They were tiny and he noticed his sister was blonde. With big smiles on their faces and funny outfits, he read the writing scrawled on the back. Johnny and Annie's backyard wedding.
The handwriting was neat and he recognized it was his stepmom's. Another picture layer next to it, with a group of kids gathered in a circle. He noticed his sister first and then the other kid, the two standing close together. He also saw Annie's older brother in the background. He was smiling and looking at his sister, with a mix of big brother pride and protectiveness on his face.
More pictures were scattered on the counter, with the two friends close together in every picture. He'd wondered why his sister didn't talk of her friend more often. Then he remembered...the kid had broken her heart.
Before he could burst into the other room and rip the kid apart, his sister shuffled into the kitchen. She smiled tiredly and said, "John is staying over tonight. If that's ok." She waited for his response and grudgingly nodded yes. She moved closer and hugged him, "Do me a favor and don't kill him?"
He grunted and she laughed quietly, "I'm serious." She looked at him and softly said, "Thank you for being concerned though. It means a lot." With that she shuffled back out the living room and curled back up on the couch. Tayler listened to her and resisted the urge to kill the other kid.
As he went back upstairs, he could still hear the music playing in the background. The soft melody and lyrics were soothing and calm. No wonder his sister loved Alec Benjamin so much.

ꕥ 𝙰 𝚗𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝙰𝚕𝚎𝚌 𝙱𝚎𝚗𝚓𝚊𝚖𝚒𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙰𝚗𝚗𝚒𝚎 ꕥ
♥︎ 𝚡𝚘, 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚊 ♥︎