Wicked

A day had passed since I told Carter I was lying to her. She hasn't spoken to me since that night. Everyone knows, I think she told Alice and Matt, and fucking Jimmy had to get involved too. Carter hadn't even looked at me since Jimmy swooped in and took her off of her feet. He was pissing me off. We had an unspoken rule – don't mess with each other's girls. And here he was, messing with her. My girl. Now, I admit, I was a complete and utter ass to her, and I really didn't mean anything I said. I lied to her about lying because I didn't want to get into something committed with Carter. I didn't want to end up hurting her in the longrun, and now I was regretting everything I said that night. I should've just gone for her. She should be riding with me on my bike again, sleeping in my bed, not Jimmy's. She should be wearing my shirts, sitting next to me at meal times, not Jimmy.
Currently, we were all getting ready to go out to a local bar to show the girls how we really partied I guess. I would go, but only because I didn't want Jimmy pulling a move on Carter.
Matt and Alice on the other hand had completely hit it off; they were attached at the hip. And the lips most times I looked at them. Matt was lucky – he didn't have a reputation to uphold. He could settle down with a girl and it would be okay. Me on the other hand? It'd be the start of a new revolution. Zacky was the same way, but now he was with Tessa. I wasn't sure if he wanted to maintain a real relationship with her, but he hadn't slept around so I sought that as a good sign for him. I thought they were just friends with benefits but I'm not too sure.
Johnny and Terri? Cutest couple ever, and that's coming from me. They've been friends the longest. Johnny was her shoulder to cry on in high school, her rebound after every breakup, her drunken calls at three in the morning. And he had put up with all of it. He dealt with being a rebound, solely because he felt he truly loved her. I liked their story, and I yearned for one of my own. Not this bullshit.
The boys and I stood at the bottom of the stairs by the front door, waiting on the girls. They were doing some show off thing as they were coming down, so they made us wait for them to get ready and whatnot. Terri and Tessa descended first, both in shorts and a front tying button up thing. Sort of like cowgirls, but with heels instead of boots and hats. We whistled enthusiastically as they waved and giggled down at us. Alice came next, earning more whistles and small cheers. She winked at us, Matt especially, and made her way carefully down the flight. She was in a low cut, black cocktail dress that hugged her body nicely, I had to admit. Matt was a lucky guy.
Eagerly, I looked up, awaiting Carter. She stepped out from behind the wall and I felt my jaw go slack as it had before when I saw her in her swimsuit. She was in a leather vest with a white tube top underneath, and a pair of skin tight dark washed jeans that would've made her father fall over dead. Her outfit was super simple, and not nearly as elaborate as the other girls. But I could feel my mouth go dry, and I couldn't say anything to her even if I wanted to.
“You look great, Car,” Jimmy stepped up beside me, grinning at her as she made her way closer to him .Fucker. That's my line. Carter hugged him around the neck and gave me a sidelong glance. I caught her eyes for a brief second, and even in that short span of time, I saw everything that I had done to her; she'd been crying earlier, and probably a lot of yesterday. She hurt. She was in pain. And that flowed into me, and I then hurt and wanted to break down and cry.
“Let's hit the road!” Johnny's voice muffled through to my foggy head, and I followed everyone out, in a daze of confusion and pain and uneasiness. I sat in Matt's car with Jimmy, Johnny and Zacky. The girls had decided to take Tessa's Yukon. We all sat in pretty much silence; the air was growing thick with awkwardness.
“So, are you guys gonna do karaoke?” Zacky decided to break the silence, and I gave a shrug in response. Johnny nodded and Jimmy shrugged as well.
“I dunno. I think we should get one of the girls up there, since it's their first real night on the town with us. I think they'd have fun.” Matt suggested from the driver's side, looking back at Jimmy and I in the back seat. Zacky had called shotgun, and Johnny was in the third row in the very very back.
My gaze met his through the rearview and I dropped my eyes. Matt may be one of my best friends, but I was still intimidated by him. Especially since Alice was his girlfriend, and Carter was her friend. He had given me a little talking to, despite Carter's refusing. My jaw still hurt from his punch yesterday, and I rubbed it at the thought. “Alice told me that Carter sings, so we'll have to ween it out of her,” he grinned at me knowingly.
I bit the inside of my cheek, stopping myself from saying anything that might make somebody mad. Luckily, Jimmy hasn't said anything to me, either. I wasn't expecting him to, he knew how I worked. He knew I was pissed at him, and he just hadn't wanted to deal with it, which was fine by me.
We pulled up to the pub, music already flooding through the doors. I stepped out and prepared myself for a long night of drinking. I wasn't in the mood to flirt with anyone tonight.
Before we stepped inside, Jimmy pulled me over beside the door – oh great. Here it comes. “Brian, I really just want to say that I'm sorry this has happened. I never meant for Carter to grow so attached, I was just trying to help her get over you. You should know that I have yet to succeed in that.”
His last sentence grabbed my attention. “What?” I looked at him questionably and insistently.
“Yeah, she's still not over you. You crushed her heart, you know. It was really shitty of you to lead her on, Bri. She really thought you liked her for her, not just because you wanted another lay.” But I do. “The very least you can do is apologize.” He looked at me for a few seconds until I gave him a small nod. He departed and entered the bar, leaving me to my thoughts.
I lit a cigarette and made my way inside, taking a long drag once my feet crossed the door. The smoke I exhaled joined in with the thick cloud that was hovering above everyone. My instincts drove me to the bar where I ordered a tall draft. If Jimmy wanted me to apologize, then I would. I just had to think of what I was going to say. Should I tell her my true feelings for her? I didn't want to lie again, so maybe I would tell her that my 'truth' to her was actually a lie. But wouldn't she hate me for lying about that, too? Ugh, I had no idea what to do.
“Troubles?” the bar tender handed me my drink, and picked up another glass, wiping it clean with a small rag. “I know tha' face. Someone got'chu stuck?” he had a thick accent that I couldn't quite place through all the noise, but I gave him a nod anyway. He looked at me expectantly, and I shook my head.
“I'll figure it out on my own. Thanks though,” I waved him off and took my drink to a tall table so I wouldn't have to deal with him again. I felt his eyes on the back of my head, and it pissed me off. I took another drag off of my cigarette, cooling my nerves a bit.
A small figured woman appeared at my side, taking the seat next to me. “Hi there. I'm Nicole,” she gave me a confident grin and I smiled politely back.
“Brian.” I offered her my hand and she took it swiftly. “Did you need something?”
She shook her head no, but kept her eyes on me. “Oh, no not really. I just saw you sitting over here by yourself, and figured I could help. You look troubled.” she batted her eyes at me and pouted her lips a little bit. “I can help you forget..” she trailed her hand over mine, softly tracing the ink on my skin. From behind her, I spotted a familiar brown head, and my vision locked in on Carter, staring over towards me and this Nicole girl. She looked even more hurt than when I told her my lie.
“Yeah, and so can this,” I lifted my drink and took a swig, brushing her hand away stiffly. She furrowed her brows, and stepped away from my table, going off to look for another victim. In a way, she reminded me of myself, but less persistent.
Carter had since watched the blonde walk away from me, and her eyes flitted back over to look at my face. My gaze locked with her's again – I'd never get tired of it – and the sounds around me dissipated into a low mumble. She seemed to glide over towards me, her face emotionless. Once she approached me, her voice knocked me out of my haze. “Who was she?” she asked defensively, crossing her arms.
“No o- wait. Why do you care?” I smirked down at her, leaning against the high table. “Jealous?”
She looked down, her confidence swirling into the drain. “I..no. No, I'm not jealous,” her voice was barely audible over the music, and I had to lean a little closer to hear her.
“Then why do you care?” I repeated the question, lifting her chin so she looked at me. I had control of the situation, and I liked it like that.
She stared at me in surprised silence, and I could see her mind trying to come up with an answer. I felt her skin grow hot on my fingers, and she jerked her head away from me. “I don't. I don't care,” she started to walk away and I caught her by the wrist, dragging her back to me.
“Yes you do,” I murmured down to her, and I saw a blush creep into her cheeks, even in the low lit room. “You know you do.”
Carter snatched her hand away from me, and her face grew tight with emotion. “No, I don't.”
“Yes you do.”
“No I don't!”
“Yes. You do.”
“No. I. Don't.” she practically spat this at me, her eyes fiery and her fists clenched at her sides. She was getting pissed, and this is exactly what I needed.
I had long since put my drink on the table, have full, and was watching her emotions flail around her. She stared at me, probably waiting for my retort so she could slap me or something. But I just stared at her right back.
“What? Why are you looking at me?” she growled, squinting her eyes. I refused to answer her, and I could tell she was starting to really get angry with me. “Answer me!” I didn't move, but I raised an eyebrow at her quizzically, throwing her a death-defying smirk. “Synyst-” she cut herself off, realizing what she had just said.
“I'm sorry, what was that?” I cupped my hand to my ear mockingly, still smirking down at her. I leaned down towards her, and watched as she visibly stiffened. “If you didn't care, 1. you wouldn't have come asking who she was. 2, you wouldn't have stayed here so long arguing about it. And 3,” I leaned over her, my lips just barely grazing her ear. “You wouldn't have called me Synyster.”
Her ear grew hot against my lips, and I could only imagine the dark red she was blushing. I pulled away from her body, finding myself gazing upon her closed eyes. She..She liked what I just did. Her eyes flashed open, and she took a step back. I hooked my finger into her belt loop, not letting her get away.
“Brian..I..I..” she was fumbling to tell me something, and the look of anger that had so recently been plastered onto her face was replaced with one of yearn.
“You what, Carter?” I tugged her closer to me, pressing my hips flush against her's. “Tell me. And when you're done, it's my turn to talk.”
She shook her head, clearing her thoughts. “No, I. I can't figure out anything to say. You..You go first,” she refused to lay a hand on me, but didn't try and pull her hips away from mine, and I took that as a good sign.
Now was my chance. I hadn't gotten any time to think this through, so I was just going to wing it. “Carter, I. What I told you the other night? It..it wasn't true. And I know me saying this now probably isn't going to change how you feel about me, and I'm sorry. I lied to you about me lying to you. I just...” I heaved a sigh. “I didn't want to hurt you, and I wasn't sure if I was ready to commit to you. I didn't want to start anything with you in fear that I would royally fuck it up, and I'm sorry. God, I'm so sorry.” There. It was out. All of it. I told her.
She looked at me, her eyes searching my face for any traces of dishonesty. I was hoping she wouldn't mistake anything. Her name over the speaker took us both by surprise. She was being called up next for karaoke. “But.. I didn't even sign up!” she called out, looking around at everyone.
“That was probably Matt or Johnny's doing. Alice blabbed about you having a voice or something,” I flashed her a grin and pushed her towards the small stage at one end of the bar. She walked wearily through the crowd, and made her way up before the mic.
“Uhm. Hi? I'm Carter, and I'll be singing ,uh. Heaven Knows.” she smiled softly down at the people in front of her. God she was so cute. The music started and I heard a few catcalls from some guys in the audience. I immediately found the source, and made my way towards them. Not my girl, asshole.

Carter's POV

I stood up on the stage, facing a room full of people. Now I knew what the guys felt like. “Uhm. Hi? I'm Carter, an I'll be singing, uh. Heaven Knows,” I gave a small smile at the encouraging faces beneath me. A cat call grabbed my attention as the music started, and I stared up, looking for the source of the raunchy call. It seemed Brian had found him first – I could see him pushing his way through the crowd towards him. He had just admitted something else to me, about how he had lied about his lies, or something, and I was still processing it.
The entry beat brought me back to where I was, and I grabbed the mic, holding a few inches from my mouth.
“Jimmy's in the back with a pocket of high,
If you listen close you can hear him cry,
Oh Lord, Heaven knows, we belong way down below,
sing it,”
The crowd joined in with me, and I smiled. It felt great, and I guess I wasn't doing half bad if they were cheering me on.
“Judy's in the front seat, picking up trash
Livin' on the dole, gotta make that cash.
Won't be pretty, won't be sweet
She's just sittin' here on her feet singin
Oh Lord, Heaven knows, we belong way down below, go,”
And the crowd joined in, again. I kept singing the song, the people who knew it singing with me, and those who didn't cheering me on. I saw Jimmy and the rest of the gang in the back, singing with me, and that gave the confidence I needed to take a hold of the stage, and make a real show out of this. I sang my heart out, and used as much of the stage as I could muster on my own.
By the end of the song, everyone was cheering and clapping, and I hung onto the mic stand grinning like a fool. “And that was Carter with Heaven Knows!” the announcer dismissed me from the stage, and I hopped down, people all around still cheering and giving me pats on the back. I pushed me way through them to get to my friends, and was greeted with more cheers from them.
“Holy shit Carter, that was awesome!” Terri high-fived me, smiling broadly along with everyone else.
“Seriously Carter, you should do something with that voice!” Tessa agreed, her smile identical to her sister's. I saw Jimmy lean over to Matt and tell him something that he nodded agreeably to.
“Yeah, Jimmy's just told me something really true. You should sing with us on our next album. We could use someone with a range like your's,” Matt stood before me, his head cocked in an inviting manner. “Whadya say?”
“Well I...yes! Absolutely, yes!” I agreed full through, no holding back. “Of course, that would be fucking awesome!”
Alice hugged me around my neck, rocking us excitedly back and forth. “Oh my God, Carter this is awesome!” she was almost more excited than I was.
“And , ya know...we could use some more help on the set work, too Alice.” Matt grinned towards her and she snapped her head back to look at him.
“You mean it?” she asked, grabbing his hand excitedly.
He gave a thinking look before nodding. “Sure, why not? The more the merrier,” he hugged her and she hugged back, jumping up and down and screeing.
“Yeah, tell that to our tour bus,” Zacky commented, earning a few laughs from everyone.
“Pffch, I think it's high time we got a new one anyway. Right Brian?” Johnny looked behind me and I froze. Shit. Brian.
“Yeah, I agree. A new bus is definitely in need,” his voice crawled over my skin and I turned to slowly look at him. He wasn't looking at me, but at Jimmy who was next to Zacky and Terri. I saw him give a curt nod before looking down at me. “Welcome to the family, Princess,” he grinned down at me and I almost fell to my knees.
Alice looked over at us, hung on Matt's arm. “Are you two...okay? Now?” she asked slowly, careful of her words.
Brian and I shared a look, and he took me in his arms, nodding to Alice. “Yeah, I think we're okay.” I heard his voice rumble through his chest and I smiled on his shirt. When I turned around, everyone was smiling at me like I had just given birth or something.
“What? Why are you all looking at me like that?” I asked, almost defensive.
“Because we knew it was gonna happen. Brian doesn't give up that easily,” Zacky commented, making everyone around me nod in agreement.
“Well shit. I wish I had known that before. I would've played harder to get,” I grinned and laughed, now facing Brian. He chuckled down at me, shaking his head.
“And I still would've gotten you,” his voice was smooth and sweet, just like the scent I clung to on his clothes. He leaned down and kissed me lightly, quickly turning it deep and passionate, earning a few whistles and yells from our friends. I smiled into the kiss and wrapped my arms around his neck, standing up on my toes.
He pulled away too soon, looking at me seriously. “And I promise, I'm never going to lie to you again. I want this, Carter. I want us. I'm lonely, and I'm tired of missing you. I want you to be mine. Please?” I watched his face, and knew he was telling me the truth. I kissed him again, and he returned it; this time softer and gentle.

Notes

Woo, two chapters on a weekday! Sweet!

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