the Reckless and the Brave (Sequel to Scream, to be Heard)

The Very First Time I Lost My Mind For A Week

"It's good," I said, handing him back his phone. "It's really good." Alex smiled.

"Thanks. I just don't know if I should keep it or just delete it like I did the last one. I just haven't been able to write lately," he replied, taking a quick sip of his coffee and setting the phone down.

"Alex, you're a fantastic writer. You shouldn't beat yourself up because you haven't written anything that's clicked. If it doesn't that doesn't mean that it's not good. It just means that you're going to write something better," I replied with a sigh. He looked down, then looked back up.

"Thanks," he replied. "You're amazing, you know that?" I smiled.

"I know." Then we both laughed, earning a few looks from the people at Starbucks. Now I knew why Rian loved this place so much. Everyone just worked. No one was laughing and talking as much as we were, so it was boringly calm. "So when does the next tour start?" He looked at me, smiled, and then let it fade.

"I've been meaning to talk to you about that," he replied.

"Why? Am I not allowed to go? Are you putting me back into regular school and making me stay with Mom and Dad?" I asked. The way he had said it killed me, as if he didn't want me there or something.

"No, no, nothing like that," he said, reaching across the table and taking my hands. "We don't really have a tour until Fall Break is over. So the guys and I were thinking of going to the beach while you're on Fall Break. After Fall Break we have the new album being dropped so we need to be in New York for that weekend, and then we don't have anything else but a couple of hometown shows until Halloween, when we kick off the Fall tour. The last date on the tour is in December, when we'll go home for Christmas. Your album is supposed to come out in March, and Reece has a few offers as a support act that you need to decided on." I smiled.

"Who are the bands? What beach? Who would I be supporting?" I asked all at once, making him release my hands and laugh again.

"Well, the bands that are supposed to be coming with us are Cass, of course, and YMAS as well. Possibly We the Kings if everything works out. And we're going to Seaside, as always."

"So who would I be supporting?" I asked again. He smiled.

"So far some of the offers are FTSK, the Summer Set, A Rocket to the Moon, and the Maine. Those are all he's told me," he said.

"Can I do all of them?" He laughed, shaking his head.

"Gotta choose one, honey. We should be going, by the way. The concert's in two hours." We got up from the table and quickly posted that we were at Starbucks, recieving an almost instantanious reply from Rian saying some words I'd care not to mention. After we got home I took a long shower, according to Alex, who was pacing when I got out of the bathroom. I changed into a pair of white shorts, a navy blue and white Glamour Kills Originality is Dead top, and a pair of navy Converse, straightened my hair, and went back downstairs where the guys were waiting, staring at me.

"Dude, you took like an hour to get ready," Rian pointed out as I was getting a bottle of diet Dr. Pepper out of the fridge.

"So? Most girls take longer than that to put their makeup on," I replied. "Be glad. Next time I might just take longer on purpose." I flopped down on the couch and turned the TV on, the remote being snatched out of my hand by Jack, who turned it onto HBO, where Home Alone was playing. "Jack, no one wants to watch Home Alone. Stop turning it on every time." He looked sad instantly, handing the remote over to Zack, who handed it back to Rian, who turned it onto CNN. I leaned my head on Zack's shoulder, closing my eyes. He put an arm around me, rubbing my back. "Are you trying to get me to go to sleep?" I asked. He smiled, shaking his head.