Ben’s POV

“Yo asshats, you’ll never fucking guess who just showed up!” Danny slurred, stumbling towards us with his glass held high in the air. He had that idiotic smile on his face and I was pretty sure what ever he said would be a joke. That was just Danny.

Cam raised his brow at James and I and then looked back at Danny. A small smirk was playing over the rhythm guitarist’s face and I automatically knew he had a smartass comment coming. “You invited your mother again, Worsnop? I thought we told you that incest isn’t best.”

“Fuck you, Cam!” Danny roared with laughter, flipping him off and putting an arm around my shoulders. “But no…those Avenged merch girls…you know Maya and Avery? They are fucking here in the flesh…and they’re alone.” His eyebrows wagged up and down as he said the last part, looking very pleased with himself.

“Your shitting us, aren’t you?” I scoffed. I pulled the glass to my lips just as Danny smacked me over the back of the head. I hated when did that.

“Do I look like I’m shitting you?” he laughed, pointing at two girls with their backs to us. Now he really must be tripping on E because those girls looked nothing like Maya and Avery. Maya had long dark hair and Avery sure as shit wasn’t blonde.

“Yeah, it looks like you need a glass of fucking water,” I said but he just frantically shook his head.

“No, it really is them! They just look different! If you don’t fucking believe me go check it out for yourself. I’m getting them drinks and I call fucking dibs!” With that Danny turned and disappeared toward the kitchen to get some drinks. Dibs? Ha, that was funny. We all knew they were taken.

“Do you think that’s really them?” James said, leaning over and whispering in my ear. I followed his gaze to the short blonde with the killer body and dress. Damn that girl was hot but nothing compared to the girl in the white dress. She surely had a body like Maya but I didn’t want to get ahead of myself. We all knew that if the girls were here then the Avenged guard dogs couldn’t be too far behind.

“There is only one way to find out,” I muttered, hitting James’ chest so he’d follow me. “Let’s check it out.”

And to my surprise, Danny was fucking right. Though I didn’t understand why they were here by themselves. I hadn’t heard anything of a break up through the grapevine and if I was Matt or Brian, I wouldn’t let my girlfriend go out looking so damn appetizing. It was no secret that I had been attracted to Maya from day one, but I knew I had to be respectful of her relationship or Shadows would rip me a new asshole.

As the girls threw back drink after drink, I showed them around my home, still trying to get a feel for what was going on. I had no idea why the girls were here and they refused to say why they were alone. Were they single, out to have fun, and fair game or where they just enjoying a night alone and would return to their boyfriends in the morning? That’s what I wanted to know because it would totally change how I approached the end of the evening. So by the time we made it to patio, I couldn’t hold my curiosity anymore. I voiced exactly what James and I were thinking.

“So, now tell me why did Matt let you out of his cage, looking so gorgeous going to a party all alone?” I asked casually as I glanced over Maya’s shoulder to James. I saw him nod lightly in agreement. “Normally he was hanging all over you, babe.”

To my surprise, instead of answering in her normally bubbly fashion, Maya curse under her breath at me and stormed away. What the actual fuck was that about? “What did I do?” I gapped at James, holding my hands up. Something wasn’t right here and I was going to get to the bottom of it.

“Fuck if I know!” James shrugged, watching her disappear through the crowd. Shit, I couldn’t leave this situation like this. I had to find out what the hell was going on.

“Shit, Maya wait!” I yelled after her, now chasing her through the crowd. “Come on, just fucking talk to me! What the hell was that?” I called, only a few steps behind her the whole time. Though I had to admit that she was fucking fast in heels.

“Maya, come on!” I grabbed her elbow and spun her around to face me when I finally caught up with her on the front patio. “What the fuck is going on?”

Maya pulled away from me and put her arms up in front of her. “Nothing. It’s nothing just fucking drop it…please,” she practically begged, her delicate hands now running through her hair. She looked the most stressed out and upset that I had ever seen her, and I didn’t know that was possible, given her usual carefree personality. This wasn’t the same woman I met four months ago; this was someone who was going through something that hurt. “God I need a fucking drink…”

“You’re in luck,” I chuckled, moving over to the small bar to the left of the patio. I had to change that expression on her face and distract her. No girl that looked like her should ever look so sad. “Does Jack Daniels tickle your fancy, babe?” I chuckled, holding up the bottle as Maya took a seat at the table. She put her head in her hands after she nodded at me, evidently trying to get herself back in check. I was thankful that no one was outside at this moment and I locked the patio door to ensure our privacy.

I took the bottle and made my way over to the table and took a seat next to her. “Unfortunately I don’t have any glasses—“ but she didn’t seem to care because she grabbed the bottle and took a long swig. “Okay then…no need for them. That’s my kinda girl!”

Maya groaned lightly and put her head back after taking another long swig from the bottle. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say she was trying to forget something with the burn. Unfortunately I knew all too well that it was only a temporary fix.

“Good stuff, huh?” I chuckled but she just shot me a look, leaning back in chair and babying the bottle. So I guess I wasn’t getting any of that. Well fuck, I’ll just have to settle with a beer. It was better than returning to soberville, especially right now.

“Ugh I just can’t fucking believe this,” Maya groaned, breaking the silence that had settled between us. She picked up the bottle and threw another gulp back and for the first time, I could see the hurt in her eyes. It didn’t belong there and part of me wanted to be the one to remove it. What the hell was that thought?

“Can’t believe what? That you’re sitting in the fucking UK with best guitarist known to man?” I teased, trying to make light of the conversation. She looked at me, scoffed, and rolled her eyes before she produced a small smile. Here we fucking go. It was about time this gorgeous specimen of the female anatomy smiled. “What? You don’t agree?”

“No it’s not that,” she shook her head, the alcohol obliviously having some affect on her now. And I wasn’t surprised because she had downed a good third of the bottle of Jack since we came outside. “It’s just that everywhere I go, there he is. Some asks about him. Someone mentions him. He’s on the fucking tv or radio… I can’t get away…it’s part of the reason I came over here…”

Well that explained a lot but I still wanted to know what happened. Last time I saw a picture of them they looked happy as fuck and I had to admit I was a little jealous. Like I said, I had a thing for the girl since the first day I met her but I wasn’t about to get ahead of myself. Not that I really wanted a relationship…I just wanted that fine piece of ass next to me. I was all about having a good time and the last thing I knew, so did she.

“You wouldn’t be the first to fly over the pond to escape your demons,” I sighed. “So it’s done?” I cautiously asked, not wanting to upset her again but I had to know.

Maya sighed and took another drink, her head now in her hands as she leaned forward. “Yeah…it’s over…for both Ave and I…I just wish I could forget.”

“Well, I have a solution for that,” I offered, her eyes snapping up to look at me for the first time. Though I would have enjoyed the view better if they weren’t tearstained. “Specially since a girl as fucking gorgeous as you should never look like this.” I wanted to know more but I didn’t dare push the topic any further. Shit, I could see how fragile she was right now and didn’t want to make her crumble. Part of me wanted to strangle M. Shadows for putting her through this while the other wanted to take advantage of the situation. Who was this other half talking today? Ben Bruce was all about partying and good time, not fucking worry about a girl’s wellbeing. Come on, get your act together!

“Yeah, and what’s that?” Maya angrily whipped away the tears that threatened to fall. She was embarrassed but she honestly had nothing to worry about. To me she still looked beautiful, even with tears. Whoa, I really needed to get a handle on myself. Maybe I was drunker than I thought.

I chuckled and stood up, pulling her along with me. “Well, it definitely involves some more of this,” I gestured to the bottle of Jack before picking it up and taking a swig. Oh, that burn felt good after the beer. Damn. “And the other part involves going back inside. Are you up for the challenge?” I teased, slinging my arm around her shoulders and passing her the bottle.

“Whatever to make me forget…” she agreed, following back inside. I quickly lead her back over toward the bar where I mixed her one of Danny’s famous drinks. As I mixed up the cocktail, I couldn’t help but chuckle at James and the little blonde in his arms. She was undoubtedly drunk at this point and dancing up a storm. That would be Maya’s step two.

“Step one in forgetting about an ex is to eliminate. And eliminate starts with E so we take some E,” I explained, passing Maya the drug laced drink. She eagerly took it and started to drink it down. It wasn’t enough to send her on a trip, just enough to help her relax and forget about her troubles.

“And what is step two?” Maya slurred, her alcohol consumption finally catching up with her. This peaceful smile was slowly starting to come over her face and I knew she was starting to feel better. It was good because a smile suited her beautiful features.

I laughed, taking a sip of my own drink. “Step two, babe? Do you really think you’re ready for step two?” I teased, my glass lingering at my lips as I watched her. Maya smiled at me and narrowed her eyes. Now that was a sexy look that I could really get used to. Damn, talk about arousing.

“Oh, you have no idea,” Maya took a step toward me and took the drink out of my hand, downing it. “I’m ready to fucking forget everything…now let’s dance,” she finished as if reading my mind.

Maya grabbed the front of my leather jacket and dragged me onto the dance floor by Avery, James, and now Danny who was trying to cut in. “Back off, Worsnop,” James laughed, though the look in his eyes said otherwise. Did he have a thing for Maya’s little friend? Well tickle me surprised….not. Avery was totally his type and he would surely be over the moon when he found out that she and Gates were no longer an item. But how to pass the message?

“Come on, Cass…you and Ben can’t hog all pretty girls,” Danny yelled over the booming music. “Let the girls fucking choose you fuck head.”

I couldn’t help but laugh when the little blonde turned around and plastered herself to James. She was definitely drunk off her ass but that didn’t make any difference. She and Maya were having a great time and who were we to interrupt their healing process, especially if I got to help.

“Looks like the lady chose Cass, sorry D,” I laughed but it was short lived, because at that moment Maya dipped down in front of me and slowly came back up. I swallowed thickly as my dick sprung to life in my pants but she didn’t even care. She just kept dancing with her friend but I couldn’t take me eyes off her.

An hour later, I found myself on the couch with Maya on my lap. Her head rested on my shoulder as she sipped from a glass, though I was pretty sure she didn’t need it. Maya and Avery were both high and drunk off their asses at this point and James and I weren’t far behind. Cass and Ave sat on the other half of the couch giggling and laughing at everything and everything, especially now that I had discreetly informed him of the girl’s relationship status. Her hands were slowly running down his face as she spoke and I swear I saw him kiss her a few times but I couldn’t be too sure because Maya was distracting me.

Her lips were dangerously close to my ear as she spoke, her warm breath tickling my skin and slowly driving me insane. There was no way she couldn’t feel my erection but I think she was too drunk to make the connection. I just kept trying to focus on her words and not the fact that I wanted to shag her senseless, even though I think it would make both of us feel better. The best way to get over someone in my opinion was to move on and fuck someone’s brains out.

Over the course of the evening, Maya slowly started to open up to me, but was very careful to avoid any mention of Matt. Which in my opinion was for the best in her drunken state. Maya wanted to forget and I was helping her do that. She told me about how she offered a spot at Oxford University at the last minute and hopped the first flight out here. Maya also told me how Avery ended up here and that this was really their first party over the pond.

“You’re kidding,” I gasped as she giggled and played with my hair. God she was drunk, but so was I so I didn’t give a damn. “The first fucking party you show up to happens to be mine…well if that isn’t fate then I don’t know what the fuck is,” I slurred and Maya nodded in agreement. “We’ll have to change that no party thing…”

“It’s exactly what we needed…I mean look at her,” Maya said with a smile as she pointed at Avery and James. The girl had a smile on her face and looked genuinely happy, though she still seemed a little vacant. At least it was a drastic improvement then when the girls first came in. “And it’s all thanks to you…or maybe James,” she teased, elbowing me.

Just then a phone started to ring and Ave sprung for her bag, pulling it out to answer. “Hello?” she giggled, sounding extremely wasted.

“Hey, love it’s probably not the best idea to be talking to anyone right now,” James chuckled, reaching down to wrestle the phone away from the little blonde.

“But it’s Zack…he wants to talk to me!” Ave giggled, trying to fend off James with the phone. To my surprise, Maya sat up and took the phone away and neither Avery nor James noticed. They were too busy tickling each other now and a few seconds later it turned into snogging. Well, I didn’t see that one coming. Though something told me it wouldn’t have happened if Avery were sober. But hey, she was smiling and having fun so who was I to stop her? In her intoxicated state, she surely wouldn’t remember this in the morning anyway.

“Sorry…Miss Jacobson is currently unavailable…try again tomorrow,” Maya laughed into the phone before hanging up and diving back into my arms. “I need some air,” she breathed, her face inches from mine. “And maybe another drink.”

“As you wish, babe,” I chuckled. It was a struggle to get both of us back up on our feet and out to the garden.

“Thank you,” Maya said as I lead her over to the patio loveseat. “You’ve been a great help tonight…” she breathed, crawling into my arms the instant I sat down next to her. I had to admit that I enjoyed the feeling of her in my arms.

“No problem and I’d happily entertain you any time, not just for a party,” and that was true. I wouldn’t mind spending time with her outside of whatever this was. In all honesty, I wanted to. I wanted to get to know each other better.

“But really…you offered exactly what we needed and I can’t thank you enough,” Maya continued to ramble in her drunken state. As she spoke, I couldn’t look away from her beautiful eyes and those perfect lips. I carefully reached up brushed her hair behind her ear and cupped her face, forcing her to look at me.

“I’m here whenever you need me…”I breathed against her lips that were only a mere inch from mine. We had just finished up our touring cycle so we didn’t have anything else to do beside dick around and start our new album.

Maya opened her mouth to say something but just pressed my lips to her, needing to taste her. And I wasn’t disappointed.

Avery’s POV

I felt so warm and comfortable right now it wasn’t even funny. Hell, I even felt like I was glowing I was so happy. In my dream there was an arm tightly wrapped around my waist and my back was pressed into a muscular figure. This felt exactly how I remembered it and it felt so good to be back in his arms. This was an amazing dream and feeling and I didn’t want to wake up and face reality—didn’t want to remember that he crushed me. I just wanted to live in this dream forever.

I pinched my eyes shut, still trying to keep my dream going. All I could picture where those dark brown eyes staring down at me as we danced up close, kissing every once and a while. I swear I could feel his arms around me and his warmth. This was the best dream I had in a while and I feared waking up. I didn’t want to go back to the reality that we were over and I was broken.

Suddenly I imagined the feeling of a small trail of kisses being placed on my shoulder and I shivered under the touch. Brian’s lips felt amazing on my skin, like little pins shocking me. “Mmm…” I moaned lightly as I cuddled back into him more. Well, that is until I realized that I was awake and someone actually was kissing my shoulder. This wasn’t a dream.

My eyelids snapped open and I sprang out of the bed, instantly regretting my motions. My head throbbed angrily as a wave of nausea crashed over me. What the hell did I do last night and why was I half naked in a bed with….James Cassells? Oh, god I didn’t…no, I couldn’t have! The panic started to set in as I frantically looked around the room. I had to get out of here and where the hell was Maya?!

“Ave, are you okay?” James asked groggily, sitting up and looking at me as I put my heels back on. I quickly pulled my dress all the way back on and shook my head. At least I wasn’t naked, but that didn’t mean we didn’t have sex. Oh, god I felt sick to my stomach and it wasn’t just from my hangover.

“No…” I gasped, shaking my head. “I-I have to get out of here!” I quickly turned and headed out the door only to find that I had no idea where I was. This was a fucking nightmare coming true and to make it all worse, I felt extremely guilty. But why? I was single!

“Ave wait,” James said, speeding out of the room behind me in only his boxers. “Can you just slow down for a minute?”

“I have to go…I have to find Maya,” or a bathroom because I was sure I was going to be sick. Oh, shit here it comes! I quickly took a right into the bathroom and made it to the toilet just in time. Oh, I felt awful. What the hell had I been thinking and what did I do last night. And most importantly, how did I end up in James’ bed?

“Avery?” James’ deep voice called from the door. I slowly picked my head out of the toilet and flushed. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine…please just leave me alone,” I begged, not wanting to make anymore of a fool of myself, or a mess for that matter. I slowly got to my feet and made my way to the sink to rinse out my mouth. Only the person looking back at me in the mirror was a complete mess. I had red lipstick smeared all over, like I had been heatedly making out and there was a hickey on the side of my neck. “Oh god,” I muttered, putting my head in my hands. What had I done?

“I’ll leave you alone,” James voice said one more time. “But just so you know…nothing happened.” I let out a small sigh of relief but judging by my face and the hickey, it was close. I really didn’t want to know what I almost did and thankfully I head James’ footsteps disappear down the hall.

I didn’t want to stick around to find out what other mistakes I had made so I quickly peaked out the door. When the coast was clear, I hightailed it out the door and I was thankful that no one saw me. How did I end up in bed with James and where the hell was Maya? She promised that she wouldn’t leave me alone but she was nowhere to be seen. The last thing I remembered was dancing with her, Ben, and James but after that I had no idea what happened. Shit, this was the last thing I need on top of everything else on my plate.

“I need to find Maya,” I muttered to myself as I walked down the street and pulling out my phone. To my surprise I had four missed calls from Zack and I didn’t understand why. Had I called him last night? God what the hell had I done?

Just them my phone started to ring again and Zack’s picture flashed across the screen. I guess there was no way out of this. “Hello?” I said, my voice sounding husky.

“Finally you fucking answer,” Zack laughed. “I’ve been trying to reach you all morning.”

“Well here I am…what’s up? Oh, did I call you last night?” I pinched my eyelids shut as he let out a long sigh.

“No, you didn’t call me but—“

“Good because I had one hell of a night, Z,” I interrupted, feeling better. I had to talk to someone about my night or else I was going to explode. “Do you have a minute?”

“Yes but I—“

“Well, Maya insisted that we go out last night, even though I really didn’t want to. You know, I haven’t really been feeling up to it,” I continued, not letting him talk. “Well…apparently I drank my weight in alcohol…and-and I don’t remember anything that happened last night.”

“I figured that much,” Zacky sighed and I raised my brow in confusion. How did he know that? He wasn’t there. “From what I heard—“

“Oh shit what did you hear?” I groaned, stopping in my tracks on the sidewalk by my apartment.

“Well…” Oh, come on Zack don’t beat around the bush.

“Well what, Zack?” I was getting impatient and I didn’t like his tone. God, he must have heard what I feared. Shit, he had to think I was a slut…

“It’s wasn’t me who called last night.”

My heart stopped in my chest and I felt all the color drain from my face. No. I had to have heard him wrong. “What?” I hissed, clenching my jaw.

Zacky sighed and I could tell he was pinching the bridge of his nose. “Just hear me out okay?” Oh, no, no, no, no! I didn’t like were this was going. My heart started to race and I could feel the bile rising again. “Gates found out about the article,” he said quickly and just the name made me feel like I had been shot in the chest. No, I couldn’t go through all of this again, but that’s what was happening. “And he was the one who called from my phone last night. I tried to stop him but you know what a stubborn ass he is. He heard you at the party with Maya and some guy—“

I couldn’t hear anymore. I hung up my phone and threw it into my purse before I crumbled to the curb. The hot tears started running down my face and I couldn’t stop them. He knew. Brian knew and I don’t know why that thought hurt so much but it did. I was breaking allover again.

“Avery? Oh shit, Ave!” I felt a pair of arms pull me into a firm chest as I cried. “Shh…it’s okay. What the hell happened?” the deep voice asked as I looked up to see a pair of light brown eyes staring back down at me.

“J-J-James? W-what…are yoooou d-d-doing here?” I sobbed as he held me to him, trying to comfort me.

“I wanted to make sure you got home okay so I followed you,” his calloused fingers carefully ran through my tangled hair. “But come on. Let’s get you home,” he said, scooping me into his arms. “What’s your address?”

I cried against James’ chest the whole way home. I was disgusted with myself for my actions last night, not that there was anything wrong with James. I just felt broken and completely lost now. Everything was officially over and there was nothing I could do and that thought killed me. My emotions and thoughts were literally strangling me as I crumbled inside. I just wanted to shut it all off, go home, and pretend I didn’t exist. I didn’t want to feel the full force of a broken heart raked through my body or that feeling of worthlessness that followed. I hit an all time low and never in my life had I felt so helpless and crushed at the same time. The worst part was that Brian knew.

“Oh my god, Avery? What the hell happened?” Maya said, freaking out when she opened the door. James brought me right in and set me on the couch. “Ave? Talk to me!” Maya begged, pushing James out of the way and taking my face in her hands. “What happened?”

“He-He-he…knows…” I sobbed, collapsing in her arms. “He knows everything!”

Notes

So is Ben up to no good? Did Avery do something stupid?