“Hey Zach.” I greeted happily as I answered my phone.
“Hey Kid. What’s up?” Zach replied, sounding equally as happy as I was.
“Nothing much. How are you doing?” I asked, chewing on my nail as I plopped myself on my couch.
“Better than a few days ago.” Zach answered, chuckling a little.
After Zach had told us about his dad, he nearly went into a panic attack. After Matt calmed him down Zach had told us what had happened earlier that day. He was making breakfast (at noon) when he had gotten a call from his dad. The conversation went on as normal: his dad asked how he was, how the band was doing, he apologized for the divorce, and so on. Although he was still holding a grudge over his parents, Zach said he was really happy to hear from his dad. That was until his dad dropped the bomb: he had a new girlfriend. Obviously this wouldn’t have been a big deal on any normal circumstance, but his dad explained they were getting pretty serious and he thinks there might be a wedding in the future. This, of course, made Zach go crazy, especially since his dad had never mentioned the chick before. After Zach hung up he tried to call up the guys, but to no avail. Luckily Matt was nice enough to let him come over. Zach ended up staying over at my house that night. Matt had decided to go to Brian’s house instead of staying with Zach and I, but had told both Zach and I that he’d be happy if we kept each other company. I was worried that Matt was actually really angry about the whole situation, but Matt looked actually really happy and sincere about what he had said. So Zach stayed over and we talked through his problems and ended the night with a few hours of video games.
“That’s good to hear.” I stated, smiling. I stretched myself out across my couch and sighed. “So you know how we were talking about doing something nice for Matt?”
“Yeah?” Zach inquired. I smiled and stared at the ceiling.
“Well it’s been three months since the concert, and I first thought we should all celebrate.” I began, ideas already clouding my mind. “But then I thought that it was Matt who saved me and I still owe him big time for that; so I was wondering if you’d come over and help me plan out this huge date for him.”
“That sounds really awesome, Kid. I’ll be there soon.” Zach agreed. We said our goodbyes and I skipped to my bedroom, planning out proper date wear. I pulled out all the shirts I owned and laid them out across my bed, trying to find one that would say ‘thanks for saving me from rape, let us make out’. After about ten minutes of fussing, I decided on a black lacey v-neck. I shoved all the shirts away and did the same routine for pants, skirts, dresses, shoes, and accessories. I knew I’d have to pick one outfit sooner or later, but I decided I wanted Zach to help me. Just as I was trying to pick out a hair style/accessory, Zach had let himself in. He came up behind me and took in a deep breath to say something when I shot my hand up to stop him. I decided on a thin black beanie and began putting my things away. After I was done I looked at Zach, who was smirking at me.
“Trying to pick out an outfit, I see.” Zach joked, making a serious face. I rolled my eyes and smiled.
“Yeah, and you need to help me.” I stated. Zach moaned mockingly and I hit him. I laid out the outfits I chose and looked over them: I had the black v-neck with a choice of a black skirt with a lace train or dark grey skinny jeans. My second option was between a form-fitting dark blue cocktail dress or a fluffy grey summer dress. I had a choice between black or grey converse or heels. I looked at Zach as he pondered what I should wear before looking at me.
“Well I think the first thing we need to do is plan out the date. Because if you’re going to go to a restaurant you’d want to wear a dress and heels, but if you’re going to the movies and then bowling or something, you’d want to wear something more comfortable like skinny jeans.” Zach explained, looking totally serious. I gave him a look and he raised his eyebrows. “What?”
“Be careful, Zach. Your gay is showing.” I snickered. Zach rolled his eyes and smiled cheekily.
“And also, if you’re planning on letting him tap that,” Zach added, playfully hitting my butt. I narrowed my eyes at him and Zach laughed. “Then dresses are a for-sure yes. Gives us guys’ easier access.”
“You’re gross.” I chuckled, shoving him playfully. Zach smiled proudly and I pulled him into a hug. He let go after a few seconds and I stretched, looking towards my bathroom. “First things first, I need to shower. So that way if I do something with my hair, it will already be dry.”
“If you hear the door open, it’s just the wind.” Zach muttered jokingly. I smiled widely and rolled my eyes before sneaking a pair of my nicer underwear out of my dresser and heading towards the bathroom.
As I undressed, I stared at myself in the mirror. I still had a hard time figuring out what Matt liked about me, and seeing how flawed I was naked made it worse. I shook off my self-judging and turned on the shower. I jumped in and took extra long on washing my hair and body, making sure I smelled like lime and coconuts everywhere. I slowly shaved my legs and armpits before letting the hot water relax my muscles for a few seconds. I jumped out of the shower and thoroughly dried myself off before pulling on my underwear and walking out. Zach was lounging on my couch, and when he saw me come out in only my underwear, his eyes bulged. I rolled my eyes and plopped myself next to him.
“Kid, I like you and all, but…” Zach said, awkwardly scratching the back of his head. I scoffed and shoved him.
“I don’t have anything to get changed in.” I explained, shoving him again. He snickered and stared at me. I looked down at his sweatshirt before looking up at him. “Give me your sweatshirt.”
“Why don’t you get your own?” Zach challenged. I glared at him and he immediately backed down, pulling off his sweatshirt. As I zipped it up around me, Zach became serious. “Okay, so what were you planning on doing tonight?”
“Well, I wanted to go to the cliff you showed me, but I also want the date to last really long.” I began, trying to explain what I had in mind. Zach nodded and thought for a minute.
“You definitely want it longer; I suggest maybe going out to dinner or something.” Zach suggested. We began brainstorming ideas for about half an hour, shooting down a lot of plans. After a few minutes of silence, Zach jumped up and smiled widely. “I got it!” I waited for him to say something, but he literally stared like an idiot at me. After a minute I face palmed.
“And that would be…?” I questioned, motioning for him to continue. Zach oh’ed and I had to resist from strangling the stupid out of him.
“What you should do is go to a club tonight-“ Zach started, pride written across his face.
“But I don’t want to go to a-“ I interrupted, whining. I didn’t want to spend a date with Matt at a club.
“Bitch let me speak.” Zach snapped. I pursed my lips and Zach smiled widely again. “You start out at a club with all of us there. The whole band. Because then we can waste time on your date and you can have your ‘happy three month friendiversary’ with us all. Then during our partying, you take Matt to a really nice restaurant and have dinner there. You spend an hour or so there just eating dinner and talking and what-not. After that, you swoop him out of there and take him to the cliff with some really nice wine and you either spend the night up there or fuck and go home.”
“… That is an absolutely wonderful plan Zach,” I stated happily, clapping with excitement. Zach beamed and I smirked. “Looks like you do actually have a brain.”
“Shut up.” Zach laughed, hitting my knee. We joked around for a few minutes before Zach stood up. “Now we need to pick out what you’re going to wear.”
“Oh shit, you’re right. What am I going to do?” I questioned, standing up after him. We walked into my bedroom and I glanced at the clothes. “If I’m going to a club and a restaurant then I should wear a dress. But if I’m also going to the cliff and we might sleep up there? That called for skinny jeans or atleast some shorts.”
“I say go with the grey party dress,” Zach suggested flatly. I looked at him questioningly and he just shrugged. “It’s perfect for the overall date; sexy for the club, sophisticated for the restaurant, and easy access for the cliff.”
“I would hurt you in some way for suggesting we’re going to have sex tonight, but I can’t get over the fact that a word as big as sophisticated came out of Zacky Vengeance’s mouth.” I said, trying not to smile. Zach rolled his eyes and shoved me a little. I slid off his sweatshirt and pulled on the grey dress. I did a turn for Zach, who was more than pleased with it. I looked at myself in the mirror before smiling. “I really do like this dress.”
“It looks really hot on you.” Zach commented. I smiled at him and picked up my shoes. As I did so, my dress pulled up, and I could feel Zach staring straight at my ass. I grimaced and sat on the bed, trying to shove my feet into my grey converse. “That’s the only problem with this dress though; nothing under it.”
“Just throw on some booty shorts or something.” Zach said a-matter-of-factly. I raised my eyebrow and Zach sighed loudly. “Yes Kid. I know what booty shorts are. I’m a freaking rock star, do you know how many under-aged chicks wear those to our concerts?”
“Probably more than there should ever be,” I guessed, snickering. Zach nodded and I stood up and walked to my bathroom. I pulled out my make-up and started up my straightener. I began straightening my hair and was concentrating on the waviest parts of my hair. After a few minutes of silence and I was half-way through one side of my hair, the bottom of my dress went up.
“Did you put on shorts yet?” Zach asked, looking up the bottom of my dress. I slapped him in the back of his head and he bolted. I ran after him, pissed and embarrassed.
“Zachary Baker I’m going to punch you.” I yelled as I chased him around my house. Zach threw a look back at me and smiled innocently.
“I was just checking if you had shorts on yet!’ Zach whined, running into the sex room.
“Well you could’ve asked instead of-“ I was cut off when an arm went around my waist and a hand went over my mouth. I squirmed and tried screaming when I was pulled closer to the wall.
“Shh, baby, calm down,” Zach whispered in my ear. My muscles tensed and I could feel my body shut down. As a child I always had extreme anxiety about getting raped, and now my body was reacting to the constant fear. I began slipping from Zach’s arms and he immediately turned me around, his eyes wide with fear. “Kid? Are you okay? I was just joking.”
“You know, there’s this fear I have.” I snapped, shaking a little. “It’s the fear of rape. Have you heard of it before?”
“I would never rape you,” Zach said quietly, rubbing my cheek with his thumb. Concern covered his face and he stared intently at me. “You’re shaking like a Chihuahua. Kid… have you been raped before?”
“No. But when I was younger I had terrible anxiety about it and you wrapping your arm around my waist, covering my mouth, and shushing me kind of made me feel like I was going to be raped.” I explained, glaring at him. Zach pulled me into a tight hug and held me until I stopped shaking.
“I’m sorry, Kid. I didn’t mean to scare you.” Zach whispered, his voice full of guilt. I rubbed his back and pulled away. I smiled a little.
“It’s okay Zacky.” I replied, rubbing his arm. He smiled and we walked back to my bedroom. He sat on my bed and I went back to my bathroom and began straightening my hair again. “Zach, call everyone and tell them to meet us at a club at around five or six.”
“Okay. Should we go to Liquid?” Zach asked. I gave him a look and he let out a small laugh. “Oh right. You’re new here. Liquid is this really big and bright club. The guys and I have been there once before, and we really enjoyed it.”
“Okay. Call everyone and tell them to meet us at Liquid.” I repeated, concentrating on straightening my hair. Zach pulled out his phone and I stopped quickly to look at him. “Don’t call Matt though. I want to invite him.”
“Sure thing, princess.” Zach sneered jokingly. I stuck my tongue out at him and he began dialing someone up. “Hey Bri, are you with anyone? … Everyone? Great-wait, is Matt there? Perfect. So tonight Kid wants us all to meet at Liquid… It’s a surprise. Just be there between five and six and meet us at the bar… great. See you later, Bri.”
“So they’re meeting us there?” I asked, finishing up on my hair. I turned off the straightener and began putting on my make-up.
“Yeah. Bri said they’ll meet us at the bar and we better be paying for the first round.” Zach informed me. I chuckled and shook my head.
“Typical Bri.” I stated. Zach laughed and nodded his head. As I was finishing up putting on my make-up, Zach walked in with a ball of fabric in his hands. I raised an eyebrow and he stretched it out. My only pair of booty-shorts. I gave Zach a look and face-palmed. “My God, man! Why do you keep bugging me about the shorts?!”
“Because I’ve been getting a great view of your ass for the last ten minutes.” Zach said bluntly. My face flushed red and I turned around so I could see the back of my dress in the mirror. It didn’t look that short, but when I went on my tiptoes or barely bent over, my ass was, in fact, on full display. Zach smirked at me as I ripped the shorts from his hands and slipped them over my shoes and pulled them up. I awkwardly nodded to Zach as thanks, and he just continued to smirk at me. I finished up the last touches of my make-up before doing a full body check. I turned towards Zach to get his opinion, and he looked me up and down before making eye-contact. “You’re sexy.”
“Thanks. Now hand me my phone.” I instructed, pointing to my bed-side table. Zach quickly grabbed it and handed it to me. I called up Matt and waited for him to answer.
“Hey Kid. What’s up?” Matt answered, sounding happy.
“All of us are going out to Liquid tonight and you’re coming with us.” I stated, excitement filling me. Tonight was going to be perfect.
“Okay. What’s the occasion?” Matt asked. I looked at Zach and he smiled.
“It’s a surprise. But wear a button-up shirt.” I said. I could physically see Matt raise an eyebrow when the other line became silent.
“Why would I need to wear a button-up shirt to a club?” Matt questioned incredulously. At this point, Zach groaned loudly and pulled the phone from my hand.
“Wear a button-up shirt because it makes for better four-play.” Zach advocated before handing the phone back to me and laughing evilly. I glared at him playfully before putting the phone back to my ear.
“Well, I’ll wear a button-up shirt, then.” Matt chuckled. I sighed and rolled my eyes.
“He’s a lying whore, don’t listen to him.” I said, throwing a look at Zach. He put his hand over his heart and pretended to be offended, which made me laugh. “I just think you should.”
“Sure thing.” Matt agreed. “So why is Zach there?”
“Because I know that he’s secretly a flaming homosexual so I asked him to help me pick out an outfit for tonight.” I explained, trying not to laugh at my slam. Matt laughed loudly and Zach came into the bathroom and hit me in the back of the head. “So I’ll see you there between five and six? We’re meeting at the bar.”
“Okay. I’ll see you then, Kid.” Matt said before hanging up. I looked at the time and it was ten minutes until five. I looked over at Zach and examined what he was wearing. He had his hair styled the way he normally did, and he must have secretly put on some guy-liner while I wasn’t looking. He was wearing a red plaid shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and black straight jeans. His converse were red, his hands were covered in black fingerless gloves, and I just noticed that his snakebites were red as well. Zach noticed my staring at raised his eyebrows.
“I just noticed that you’re wearing a lot of red today.” I explained. Zach nodded and stood up from my bed.
“Do you want to get going? We still have to pick up some wine for tonight.” Zach questioned. I nodded and grabbed my phone before shutting off the bathroom light. I picked up my small purse and threw my phone, credit card, and ID into it before grabbing Zach’s hand. We walked out of my apartment and down the flight of stairs to his BMW. On the way to the store, Zach and I went over the plans for tonight about a million times so I had it down perfectly. Because I was ‘unskilled’ in picking out alcohol, Zach ran into Wal-Mart and bought the alcohol for tonight, his treat. It had become 5:20 after the drink run, so we headed for the club. I began chewing on my nail, suddenly nervous about tonight. What if I mess something up? Zach put his hand on my leg and I looked at him. “What’s wrong, Kid?”
“I’m just nervous. What if I do something that screws it up?” I asked, looking at him worriedly. Zach’s eyes softened and he squeezed my leg before pulling back to drive.
“You won’t screw it up. Tonight is going to be awesome, and Matt is going to love it.” Zach assured me. I took a deep breath and stared forward. I really hoped tonight went well, Matt really did deserve a good night for saving me at the concert. I continued thinking about the plans for tonight when Zach pulled into Liquid. My eyes widened at the sight; this place was huge. The club was lit up with bright pink and blue that I honestly wouldn’t surprise me if you could see it from space. Zach got out and opened my door for me. We walked into the club with our arms entwined and headed towards the bar. Everyone was already there, and they waved as Zach and I approached.
“It sure took you guys long enough, I’m thirsty as hell.” Brian complained, playfully punching my arm. I rolled my eyes and turned towards the bartender to order some shots. The guys all laughed at me as the bartender said they didn’t serve to minors and almost called security on me. I glared at the bartender as I pulled out my ID and handed it to him. He pursed his lips and mumbled an apology before pulling out shot glasses for us. As I waited for the stupid bartender to get our drinks ready, everyone was making small chat. Jimmy was the first to look at me with wonder.
“So why did you have us come here tonight, Kid?” Jimmy asked. Everyone turned their attention towards me, also curious about that. I smiled and ran my eyes over all of them.
“Do you know what day it is today?” I questioned. Johnny, Brian, and Matt all said the general information, but I shook my head. They gave me a confused look and I smiled wider. “It is exactly three months from your Huntington Beach concert.”
“The concert we saved you at,” Jimmy finished, smiling widely. I nodded and everyone pulled me into a group hug. The bartender announced that the drinks were ready and I paid before handing one to each of them. I noticed that Emma was here too, and she smiled softly at me. I returned the smile and handed her the last glass.
“To Kid. For managing to almost get raped at our concert. Without that, we would have never met her,” Brian stated loudly, holding his glass up. We all cheered and drank our shot. Music started playing and Emma pulled me out to the dance floor. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that Brian and Matt were buying more drinks, and I stopped Emma for a second. I went up behind Matt and went on my tiptoes so I was right next to his ear.
“Don’t drink too much, the night doesn’t end here,” I whispered, my voice a little bit more seductive than I had hoped. Matt looked at me with a mix of surprise, want, and smugness on his face as I turned to walk away. I went back to Emma, pulling Jimmy along with me to the dance floor. We all went into the middle of the crowd and began dancing together, Jimmy and I doing an awkward mostly-swaying dance. Soon Buckcherry’s Crazy Bitch came on, and all the guys ended up next to us. Emma and I danced together, grinding next to each other. Soon Johnny came behind Emma, and she jumped from me to him. I danced on my own for a little bit before a hand touched my shoulder. Jimmy handed me a small drink, and I smiled. We danced together for a little bit since everyone else went back to the bar, where there was a small group of cute girls.
“So why aren’t you hitting on those chicks like Zach and Brian?” I questioned, looking up at Jimmy. He chuckled and smiled.
“The Rev doesn’t chase, The Rev gets chased.” Jimmy mused. I laughed and side-hugged him. Right after he said that, a cute girl about my height came up next to us. Her bright blue-green eyes were wide as she stared shyly at Jimmy. This girl was a little shorter than me, and had velvet-red hair. She had a nose ring, and she was wearing a black cocktail dress and high-tops. She vaguely reminded me of my old friend Lynn. I looked up at Jimmy, who was looking everywhere but at the girl and I. I looked back at the girl and we made eye contact. I smiled and she returned it. I looked at Jimmy and back at her, and she nodded, staring intently at Jimmy once again.
“Hey, Rev. Looks like you’re being chased.” I snickered, tugging on his arm. He looked down at me and I pointed to the girl next to me. He smiled widely and introduced himself to her. I backed away, letting them have alone time to get to know each other. I headed for the bar when Zach stopped me.
“It’s almost seven. You guys should get going.” Zach whispered in my ear. I nodded and looked for Matt, who was having a drink with Brian. I raised my eyebrow and Zach smirked. “He’s only had about two or three, so he shouldn’t be drunk or anything.”
“Good to know.” I replied before walking to Matt. I pulled on his arm and he looked at me. I leaned him down and put my lips next to his ear. “Let’s get out of here.”
“Where are we going?” Matt questioned as I pulled him towards the exit. Zach gave me thumbs up and I smiled.
“I told you the night didn’t end here.” I mused as we walked into the cool night. I entwined our fingers together and walked in the direction of the restaurant Zach told me to go to. He said it was semi-fancy, and only about a block from Liquid. I glanced at Matt, who was looking at me with confusion. I laughed a little and squeezed his hand. “It’s a surprise. Just be patient, young one.”
“Says the girl who is seven years younger than me and goes by Kid.” Matt joked. I rolled my eyes and scanned the buildings until I saw one that looked like a restaurant. As we approached it, I had to keep myself from laughing at the name. I looked at Matt, whose eyes lit up. “La Fenêtre? I love this restaurant.”
“Yeah… sounds… appetizing.” I said, trying to hold back laughter. Matt gave me a weird look but I continued to go into the restaurant and get a table for two. The waitress brought us to a booth and gave us menus.
“Hello, my name is Macie, and I’ll be your waitress today. Can I start you with a drink?” The waitress asked. I looked down at the menu and started laughing when the words La Fenêtre were written hugely across the front of the menu. Matt and Macie gave me weird looks and I pursed my lips to stop the giggles.
“I’m sorry… it’s just… do you realize La Fenêtre means ‘the window’ in French?” I said, trying to hold back more laughter. Both of their faces fell, and I saw Matt trying to hold back laughter as well. Macie looked embarrassed that she was working at ‘The Window’ and excused herself to the back for a minute.
“It seriously means The Window?” Matt laughed. I nodded and pursed my lips, trying to stop laughing. Matt mimicked me and after we were both composed, Matt looked at me in wonder. “You speak French?”
“I took it in high school.” I explained. Matt nodded and Macie had returned from the back, looking flustered. She once again asked for our drinks, and we both ordered a soft drink. After a few minutes of small talk, Macie brought our drinks and took our order. As we waited for our food, Matt stared at me curiously.
“Are you going to tell me what all this is about now?” Matt asked quietly. I smiled and reached over to grab his hand. I squeezed it tightly and smiled widely.
“I’m taking you on a date. As a thanks for saving me from almost being raped at the concert.” I answered, my voice soft. Matt smiled and leaned over to kiss me.
“So is this all we’re doing tonight?” Matt questioned. I shook my head and smiled.
“We have to go back to Liquid to get your car, because I’m going to take you somewhere after this.” I informed him. His eyes lit up and he smiled widely, causing me to laugh. Our food came quickly and we talked about how we spent the days away from each other. I decided to keep the whole Gayle thing from Matt for tonight because that’d probably cause a shit-load of drama. For the few days without seeing Emma and I, Johnny and Matt did pretty much the same that we did with all the guys; movies, mall, music stores, bowling, clubs, bars, restaurants, and practicing their music. Matt was explaining how they started writing a new song, but it was really shitty at the moment, so they didn’t know if they’d use it. After half an hour of joking and talking, we were both done. I paid and we left, heading back towards Liquid. I got a text from Zach that said he had put the wine and blankets in Matt’s car, so I wouldn’t have to worry about it. After a few minutes of comfortable silence, we got back to Liquid and headed towards his car. I got in the driver’s seat as Matt slid in the passenger’s and handed me the keys. The car ride was silent of any conversation, which was okay with me because I had to concentrate on where to drive. Zach had told me you take the main street in Matt’s neighborhood until you get to the woods, and you take the same path up the cliff until you come to a fork and you take the path to the right. Slipknot was playing softly as I got to the path and I glanced at Matt. He was staring intently at me, and I raised my eyebrows. “What?”
“I’m just curious about where the hell you’re taking me.” Matt responded, his voice low. I smiled and winked at him before continuing up the rocky path. It was about a ten minute drive up the hill until I got to the fork and pulled into the right path. The dense forest opened up into the familiar cliff that overlooked the city. I saw Matt’s eyes bulge as he took in the scenery. I smiled and got out, grabbing the wine and blankets that were in the backseat. I set up our resting area in the same spot Zach had, and looked back at Matt. He was still gawking at the view of the city, and I motioned for him to come out. I sat down as Matt slowly jumped out of his car and walked towards me. He sat down next to me with wide eyes. “Holy shit.”
“I know right. It’s absolutely beautiful up here.” I agreed, looking at the sky in awe. The sky was still streaked with purple and white, but it was much brighter and more breath-taking than it was the first time I was up here. Matt wrapped his arm around me and glanced up at the sky as well.
“Not as beautiful as you.” He murmured in my ear. I blushed and looked at him. His eyes were big and he was staring straight into mine. He pulled me into a kiss and scooted closer to me. I deepened the kiss and put my hand on his face. He nipped at each other’s lips a little bit before pulling away. I opened up a bottle of wine and we both took a drink. After a huge swig, Matt wiped his mouth and laid himself down. I snuggled next to him and rested my head on his shoulder. We sat silently for what seemed like ages, slowly watching the sky turn a darker black. After what I guessed was two hours, Matt tightened his grip on my back and looked at me, pulling me up for a kiss. “So how did you find this place?”
“Oh, Zach brought me up here a-“ I began, closing my eyes as I leaned in. Matt suddenly sat up and pulled his arm away from me.
“Wait, what?” Matt asked, anger filling his eyes. I sat up and looked at him, confusion covering my face.
“Zach showed me this place, he thought it was perfect for-“ I tried explaining, but was once again cut off.
“Zack said you should take me up here?” Matt questioned, hostility thick in his voice. My eyes widened in shock and I shook.
“No, I said I should, Zach just-“
“So Zach planned all of this?” Matt spat, standing up. I tried protesting again when Matt put his hand up to stop me. “I can’t believe this. I can’t believe you. I thought you were doing this to be nice. But this was all Zach’s idea and you just went along with it.”
“No, that’s not what it-“
“Just save it, Kid. I’m done with this. I’m done with you.” And with that, Matt stomped over to his car and got in. He pulled away and began driving down the hill, leaving me speechless and alone on the cliff without a car.