Avery’s POV

I could hear the fans screaming behind the tall black curtain as I waited for the guys to come on stage, the energy in the air making the hair on my arms stand on end. It was like little electrical currents of excitement were running over my skin, filling my body with adrenaline and anticipation. I couldn’t wait to see the show and I knew the thousands of fans behind the curtain were feeling the same way.

“You feel that?” Jason asked, appearing to my right with a handful of earpieces. He looked down at me with a knowing smile as I anxiously bounced up and down on the balls of my feet, my heels creating a sporadic rhythm on the stage platform. So I wasn’t the only one that felt the energy soaring through the air?

I nodded slowly, my eyes growing wide. “You feel it too?” I asked in awe and Jason laughed at my facial expression. What? It was a new feeling for me! “What is it?’’

“That is the energy of thousands of fans at sold out crowd on a Friday night, beautiful,” Jason chuckled.

“It’s incredible,” I murmured, feeling the stage buzz with their chanting. It had to be one hell of a crowd. “Does it always feel like this?”

Jason shrugged his shoulders and looked toward the back door as it opened. “We always have good crowds, but this is exceptional. You’re going to be in for a real treat tonight, Ave,” Jason said before putting his hand on his own earpiece. “Yeah, I’m coming and I have the ear buds, keep your pants on, Matt.” Jason looked back at me with an apologetic look but I just shook my head.

“Don’t worry about it, I’ll see you later,” I assured him, though I didn’t know how true that statement was. I didn’t know if Brian and I would make it to the after party after I watched him perform on stage. There was just something about watching him work that drove me crazy.

A few minutes later I felt a pair of arms snake around my waist and pull me into a firm chest. I closed my eyes and leaned back against him, knowing exactly who it was. Damn he smelled good. I ran my hands over the sleeves of his leather jacket as his warm breath tickled my neck. “You look positively sinful tonight, love,” Brain’s voice sounded in my ear. “You’re going to make it very hard for me to concentrate.”

I spun around in Brian’s arms, meeting his chocolate orbs with a pointed look. “You picked it out,” I giggled and put my arms around his neck. “So you can’t blame anyone but yourself.”

Brian had picked me out a little black lace, strapless, thigh length dress that I had paired with my cropped leather jacket. My hair was pulled into a high ponytail and I had on black leather anklet boots. I looked good but in my opinion, I didn’t even compare to Maya. She was wearing a cutout red dress that she had designed herself and she looked breathtakingly beautiful. If that didn’t get Matt’s attention then I didn’t know what would.

“That maybe true,” he cooed in my ear, placing a small trail of kisses down my throat. I swallowed thickly. “But it doesn’t mean that you don’t look drop dead gorgeous. You better stay right here were I can see you at all times. We wouldn’t want someone to run off with you…” His lips were making it increasingly difficult to focus on anything besides him, including the multiple people moving around us.

“Of course,” I agreed with mock seriousness. “It’s for safety reasons…”

“And…” Brian practically growled in my ear. “I want to know exactly were you are so I can drag you back to the hotel as soon as we’re done. I hope you didn’t make any plans because tonight you’re mine, babe.” Brian’s lips suddenly crashed down on mine as he dipped me backwards.

“Oh fucking hell, Gates let’s go! We’ve got a show to do!” Matt Berry called from behind us as Beetle Juice theme started to play. Brian kissed me for a moment longer before the placed me back on my feet.

“To be continued,” he said with a wink before he dashed over to Za to get his guitar. I breathlessly watched him fly onto stage just as the curtain was pulled and the fans erupted with cheers.

“He really is something else,” Maya sighed as she appeared at my side.

“Yeah, he is,” I smiled, looking over at her as Matt started singing.

She looked stunning tonight but I could see the sadness looming in her eyes. Whatever was going on between her and Matt was eating her alive and I felt helpless. She didn’t know what was going on or why he was avoiding her so I didn’t know how I could help. I tried to talk to Matt about what was going on but as soon as I mentioned Maya’s name, he pretended to have a phone call and left me standing in the lobby.

As Brian and the guys performed, I couldn’t take my eyes off the stage. It was amazing how effortlessly Brain moved on the stage and how easily his fingers flew across the frets. He was the guitar god everyone said he was and so much more that they didn’t know. To everyone else he was Synyster Gates but to me he was Brian Haner Jr. the man I loved with every ounce of my being.

The music pulsed through my veins as my body swayed to the beat, almost like I was in a trans. I could feel every beat surge through my body, stimulating every cell in my body and making me feel alive. And to my relief, when I looked over at Maya she appeared to be in the same state of mind. Though her eyes were glued to the front man while mine were to the right.

Every once in a while, my eyes locked with Brian’s and I felt like I was the only person in the world. He would shoot me a wink or bit down on his knuckle as he looked at me, reminding me of our little moment before he went on stage. God, was there anything that man didn’t look good doing? All I could do was chew my bottom lip and watch his fingers, remembering exactly what they felt like on my tender flesh.

By the time they guys started to play their last song, my heart was racing with anticipation. I couldn’t wait for Brian to whisk me back to the hotel and have his evil way with. I was so turned on by everything that I could barley stand it.

As he started to play Unholy Confessions, Brian licked his lips and nodded at me, his eyes never leaving mine. His gaze was hypnotizing and sent small goosebumps all over my body. Damn, he had some magical effects on me and that thought alone made me giddy about being in his arms later.

I let out a light moan and closed my eyes, my head falling back as I danced with Maya. This moment felt so good that I didn’t want it to end. I was on a pheromone high and it felt amazing. “They are so damn good,” I practically moaned in Maya’s ear, my euphoric high driving me to the next level. “I cant wait until—“ only I didn’t get to finish my sentence because at that moment I felt a hand on my shoulder.

I looked at Maya with a questioning look before we both turned around to see an all to familiar figure standing in front of us. No way, it couldn’t be. I had to be seeing things! Wouldn’t the guys have given us a heads up?!

“D-Dad?” I gasped over the music as my stomach dropped to my feet. Oh, god what was he doing here? Did the guys know he was coming? Shit, we were supposed to be in the UK not living it up backstage at a Sevenfold concert! Did someone tell him that I thought I was pregnant? I swallowed thickly as the panic started to rise in my chest. I suddenly felt like I was going to be sick.

“Mr. Jacobson, how nice to see you,” Maya said looking at me with her own panicked look as he pulled us into a hug.

“It’s so nice to see you girls. This is such a pleasant surprise,” his deep voice rang in my ear. In the distance I heard the crowd screaming, which told me the guys had finished their last song.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, pulling out of the hug. Dad raised a questioning brow at me and I swallowed thickly. Oh, god he was suspicious! What did he know?

“I was just about to ask you girls the same question. I thought you were working in England?” Dad said and the guilt started to pour on. Shit, we should have told him we were coming but then he would have asked questions. This just wasn’t a good situation.

“Well you see…we-we…ah…” I started but I couldn’t think of anything—my mind went blank. I could only think about the fact that I was keeping two major things from him and I felt awful. He was going to be so disappointed in me and I couldn’t bare that look. Not to mention how angry he would be if someone let it slip that I may be pregnant. Both Brian and I would be dead then…

“We were in the UK,” Maya said, stepping in for me, which only made my dad’s cross his arms in front of his chest. He didn’t believe any of this. We were so dead. “But Jimmy called and offered us tickets,” Maya lied and by the look on my dad’s face, he wasn’t buying it.

The last thing he knew, we didn’t want anything to do with Avenged because of Matt and Brian. So why would we suddenly change our minds and show up at a show? So obviously this conversation was off to a wonderful start. “Hmm,” Dad responded with a thoughtful look. “You made up with the guys then? After what they did to you?”

“I-It was kind of a misunderstanding,” I tried to explain but I was just digging us even deeper into the whole. Thank goodness the guys came off the stage at that moment.

“Larry! Hey what’s up, man? We weren’t expecting you,” Matt said, making his way over without even a glance in our direction. Really Matt, you’re going to continue with this little game your playing? Though it was probably for the best right now. We’d work on fixing that later, even if I had to lock the two of them in a room together. It was no secret that they were both miserable right now.

Dad chuckled and shook Matt’s hand, watching Maya and I out of the corner of his eye. “I just thought I’d stop by and check in with you guys on the last few days of your tour. I got to hear part of a great show and got a little surprise,” he said, gesturing toward us.

“Yeah, we were surprised to see them too,” Brian said, appearing next to me. I could see the panic in his eyes but at least he was better at masking that I was. The only thing I could do to keep from freaking out was chew on my bottom lip and twist my hands together in front of me. His hand gently rubbed my back as he continued and I only hoped that my dad didn’t see that.

“They just showed up the other day out of the blue.” I pinched my eyes closed; his story conflicted with ours. Great, now he really knew something was up. “Though it’s been nice to have them back.” No, no, no don’t tell him that! He still thinks we hate each other! Fuck this was a disaster and it just kept getting worse.

“Not back, just visiting,” Maya clarified, earning a look from Brian and an eye roll from Matt. “We just came in for the show and the party, that’s it.” She said, giving them both a pointed look.

“What? You’re leaving?” Jimmy’s scream sounded behind me. “I thought you said you were staying with us and then going back to Huntington Beach! What about the Knife—Heelllo…Lar-Bear!!” Jimmy said, his eyes growing wide when he saw my dad. He stepped forward to give him a hug but he just held his arms up to stop him.

“Well, obviously we have a lot to talk about,” Dad said and all I wanted to do was crawl into a ball and hide. This had to be some kind of nightmare, right? God, I felt like I was going to be sick. And to make matters worse, the guilt and fear just kept on welling higher and higher inside of me. “Meet me back at your hotel in the banquet hall at ten, we’ll all sit down and have a nice diner. How does that sound, baby girl?” Dad’s blue eyes were locked on me and I swallowed thickly.

“Sounds good, Dad. See you then,” I said, my voice cracking with nerves. Thankful he didn’t question us anymore and turned and headed out the back door. “Oh my god…” I gasped once I saw the door shut, the panic really coming on full force now. “What are we going to do? He didn’t believe a word any of us said…” I cried, waving my hands in front of my face. I suddenly felt extremely hot and like I was going to pass out.

“Relax, love,” Brian said, pulling me into his arms. I could hear his heart racing in his chest so I knew he was anything but relaxed at the moment. “We just have to remain calm and all be on the same page.” His eyes scanned the group and everyone nodded in agreement.

“He’s suspicious. What if he found out about-about…” My eyes met Brian’s and I frantically shook my head. I couldn’t bring myself to say the word or even think about how pissed my dad would be. Hell, he didn’t even like the idea of Brian and I together, so why would he be happy that we were having a baby?

“No one has said anything about that, Ave,” Zacky said, earning nods around the circle. “We didn’t even know he was coming and none of us have talked to him since you guys joined us.”

I slowly nodded my head, trying to calm down. I had to get myself under control or my dad would really know that something was up. “Okay so Ave and I are here to visit. Jimmy invited us and we are telling him we are due to go back to the UK in two days. Everyone got the story?” Maya said, her eyes looking directly at Matt.

I couldn’t miss the frown on his face or the sadness in his eyes before her spoke. “Do whatever you want. I’m going to go shower. I’ll see you at dinner,” Matt said before he left the group.

“So it’s settled and remember, no one says anything about our situation,” Brian said before everyone went their separate ways.

An hour later, the eight of us awkwardly sat around the large table. The only thing that you could really hear was small talk and the scraping of forks against plates. Not to mention that you could cut the tension in the room with a knife. I just kept glancing across the table at Brian whose jaw had been locked since we entered the room. There was no doubt that he was freaking out about my dad being there and I didn’t blame him. I was terrified too. Everything was on the line right now and we all knew it.

“Okay, what the hell is going on here?” Dad finally burst, breaking up Jimmy and Johnny’s small talk at the end of the table. He dropped his silverware on the table and looked between Maya and I.

We all looked down at each other and then down at our plates, not really knowing what to say. “What do you mean?” Maya finally said after a few seconds of awkward silence.

“Oh, I don’t know. Why are you girls here instead of in the UK where you said you were,” Dad said and I could feel his eyes burning a hole in the side of my head.

“We came to visit,” I finally sighed, looking up and meeting Brian’s eyes. I couldn’t completely lie to him about everything—it was too hard.

Dad scratched his head and looked around the table with a raised brow, obviously still confused. “We ran into each other in the UK when we were there on tour,” Brian continued nervously, my dad’s narrow eyes snapping over to him. “And we…erm…talked things out.” Well, we didn’t really do much talking there but Dad didn’t need to know that.

“And then we came to visit because we missed their concert in the UK,” Maya continued but my dad still looking between Brian and I.

“So you two are back together, aren’t you?” Dad scoffed, looking between Brian and I. We both looked back at him agape. Was it that obvious? Shit, what else did he know? “Come on, guys,” he continued leaning forward on the table. “I’m not stupid. Something definitely up with you two. Not to mention everyone told me a different story earlier. So spill it, what is going on!”

“Yes, Ave and I are back together,” Brian said cautiously and I nodded my head. I chewed my bottom lip as the vein in Dad’s neck throbbed for a moment. After a moment he nodded his head, seeming to think for a moment.

Dad leaned forward and looked at me across the table. “Are you sure, baby girl? I mean, after all that happened you want to go back with him?”

“Yes,” I said without missing a beat. “It was misunderstanding…that’s all.”

“Hmm…” An unreadable expression came over his face and I swallowed thickly. My eyes met Brian’s and his jaw locked again. “There’s not another reason?”

“No! What makes you think that?” Brian said almost too quickly. My breath hitched in my throat at the look on my dad’s face. “I mean, I love your daughter, Larry. There is not another reason besides that,” he covered quickly and I let out a slow breath. “Why would you think that?”

Larry pursed his lips and looked around the table, “no reason. I just wanted to make sure my little girl was sure. And I’m warning you Haner, if you screw this up again, you’re going to face more than Ave’s cold shoulder.”

“Don’t worry I wont let her or….I wont let her go, Sir,” Brian promised and my dad nodded. My heart slowly started to slow down in my chest, knowing we were off the hook for now. Though I still felt bad for keeping all this from him.

Suddenly his dark blue eyes were looking between Maya who were sitting on opposite sides of the table avoiding eye contact. He narrowed his eyes as he looked between them. “So Brian and Avery and together….their behavior makes sense now. But what is going on with you two?” Dad asked, gesturing between Maya and Matt. “Something is up with you two, but totally it’s different. What the hell is up with you?”

Maya’s fork fell out of her hand and clambered to the table. “Nothing is going on with us…we’re good,” Maya said with one the fakest smiles I’d ever seen, which was really saying something. “Matt and I are just friends—“

“Bullshit!” Matt suddenly burst, slamming his fist down on the table. He glared across the table at Maya. “She’s right that nothing is going on between us, but that’s only because she dating someone else that apparently makes her a hell of a lot happier then I ever could!” he raged before stand up and throwing his napkin on the table, leaving us all gapping after him. So that’s what was bothering him…

“Is that true, Maya? Are you dating someone else?” My dad asked as the door slammed shut making us all cringe.

Maya gapped at the door, setting her napkin down on the table. “I-I…yes…” was all that she said, her mind clearly in another place.

Dad raised a brow at Maya, watching her closely. “Well, who is he? Do I know him?”

“It’s Ben Bruce from Asking Alexandria,” Brian said and my father’s eyes grew wide. He seemed to finally make the connection as to why they held a graduation party for us. Maya closed her eyes and took a deep breath as my dad continued.

“Maya,” Dad leaned forward and started to massage his temples with his fingers. “I think you should really reconsider that choice,” yeah well you and the rest of us, Dad. “I mean, Bruce doesn’t have the best reputation and at least when you were with Matt I could keep an eye on him.”

“Yeah…sure thing, Mr. J…Excuse me….” Maya said absentmindedly as she quickly stood up and bolted out the door. “Matt, wait!” we heard her call before the door shut.

“So, who’s ready for desert?”


Matt’s POV

After I stormed out of the private dinning room, I angrily paced the long hallway. I ran my hands up over my head as a frustrated growl escaped my lips. I just couldn’t sit there any longer and pretend that everything was fine and put on a fake smile. Fuck that, I was hurt and angry and so sick of the lies! God, how could Maya sit there and say that were just friends after everything we’d been through? There was no way that was possible, not when there was a spark every time we fucking touched. There was no possible way that we could just be friends, not when I cared so deeply for her.

Tonight’s charade with Larry finally pushed me over the edge and I couldn’t take it anymore. I realized that I wanted her fully with me or I couldn’t have her at all—there was no middle ground anymore. It hurt too much to be in limbo.

At the end of the hallway, I stopped in front of the long mirror. I stared at my reflection in the mirror while my mind swirled through an array of thoughts. Sure I looked okay but was just the façade. On the inside I felt like absolute shit. Not only had I fucked up in almost every song during the show but I was also forced walk away from the one person I couldn't get out of my mind. Those dark brown eyes were all that I could think about and I was pretty sure I was slowly going insane. Did she have any idea the kind of effect she had on me? What killed me the most was that she just threw it all away for that British scumbag. And for what, to prove that she could be happy without me? Did she really think that there wasn’t anything left between us? That she could just ignore what she felt? That was complete and utter bullshit and we both knew it.

What the hell was she thinking all this was between us? Just some distant memory of our happiness? Fuck, I didn't think of it that way at all. No, there was definitely still a spark between us. So what was so wrong with me wanting her back? We fucking belonged together and everyone could see that. Everyone except her! I don't think I'd ever really wanted it more in my life.

“Matt wait!” I closed my eyes and inwardly cursed. This wasn’t what I needed right now. I just wanted to be left alone.

Without waiting for her to catch up, I started down the corridor toward the elevator. I didn’t want another one of her empty apologies. That wasn’t going to fix anything between us.

“Matt?!” Maya voice said as she grabbed my arm and span me around. She was faster than I thought in those heels. I took in an exasperated breath and looked up at the ceiling, trying to keep my cool.

“I don’t want to hear it, Maya,” I replied coldly, turning away from her again. I knew where this conversation was headed and she could save her breath. My feelings were already hurt. She didn’t have to rub it in my face that she was happy with Bruce. I got that when I walked into her skype session.

“Don’t want to hear what? You haven’t heard anything from me in days!” she shot back and I scoffed. And there was a reason for it! Listening to her would only make it harder for me to ignore her and pretend she wasn’t there, especially when I knew I couldn’t be her friend. I needed more than that.

“Matt, what the fuck is your problem?” Maya snapped at me. “Why are you avoiding me?”

I scoffed and shook my head, crossing my arms over my chest. “You don’t want to have this conversation, Maya. Go back to dinner,” I laughed humorously.

“No! You owe me some answers! What the hell is going on?” She asked, getting in front of me as I tried to start walking again, her hands firmly on her hips.

“Like you don’t know,” I scoffed. I didn’t want to play this game with her.

“If I knew I wouldn’t be fucking asking!” Maya gave me a shove in the chest and I clenched my fists. “Why did you say that you’d be my friend and be there for me and then the next pretend like I don’t exist? What the hell happened?!”

“Because you—err!” I growled, turning and trying to walk the other way. “Just fucking drop it, Maya. You made your choice and now I’m making mine!”

Maya raced around me and stopped directly in front of me, blocking me from the staircase. “What are you talking about?”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about!” I hissed, narrowing my eyes at her. “You’re the one who decided that we should be friends, but guess what, Maya? I cant fucking do that! I. Cant. Be. Friends. With. You!” I said, through a clenched jaw.

“Oh that’s rich, Matthew!” Maya snapped back, getting right in my face. “So everything that you told me was a lie? That’s just fucking great!”

I ran my hands over my head in frustration. How was she turning this back around to make me the bad guy? “It wasn’t a lie! Nothing I have ever told you has been a lie and I wish I could say the same for you!” I growled, turning to go the other way.

“What the hell does that mean?”

I scoffed as I headed for the back staircase. “Just fucking drop it,” I snapped before I pushed open the door and headed up the stairs towards my room. I was starting to see red again. “You’ve made you’re choice so just go fucking call Bruce and have phone sex or whatever it is you two do!”

“You asshole!” Maya yelled after me, hot on my heels. “I came out here to apologize to you for the other night but I can see you’re throwing a tantrum and running away instead of talking about things.” I just kept walking toward my room, trying to pretend she wasn’t there because I was beyond pissed right now. How dare she turn this all around and make this my fault? She was the one running from me for months! Well guess what, I was tired of this game.

“That’s right keep running, Matt! At least Ben talks things out like a man!” Maya yelled behind me.

I stopped dead in my tracks, my raising blood pressure caused a pounding sound to erupt in my ears and my vision to turn red. I clenched my fists and turned around to face her.

“You want to know what my fucking problem is, Maya? Huh?” I raged taking a step towards her but she didn’t back down. “I fucking love you and you don’t give a damn! You’re too busy being stuck up Bruce’s ass to even acknowledge how you really feel! There is something special between us and you just fucking ignore it and I’m sick of it. I cant be your friend because I want all of you, not just parts!” I yelled back and she gapped at me. “Not to mention that you don’t know what’s good for you! You run away from everything that you’ve ever loved except for Avery, but that’s only a matter of time too, right?”

Maya looked like I slapped her in the face and shook her head. “Fuck you, Matt!” she hissed, turning around and heading back down the hall. Oh, no she started this argument and she wasn’t going to get away that easily. The truth hurt but it was time she fucking faced it.

"Now you’re doing what you do best, running away from someone you love!" I yelled as I stormed after her. “Why are you so afraid to go for what you want? You know you still love me, Maya! Stop running!”

Maya held up her middle finger as she walked towards the staircase. Oh, like that was really going to deter me from following her. If she was hoping that I would get the hint and forget about her, she was sadly mistaken.

"Hey! I'm talking to you!" I shouted, closing in as she looked over her shoulder, flipping her hair at me. Oh, please, that only made me want her more. I wanted to get my fingers tangled in that mane and pull—hard.

“Just go back to your room, Matt. You’ve made yourself perfectly clear!”

I grabbed Maya by the shoulders and forced her look at me. Those stunning brown eyes met mine and my heart started to race, feeling flutter in my chest. Maya shook her head, obviously feeling the same thing. She was a bad liar, at least to me. She couldn’t deny that there was something between us other than sexual chemistry. We were good for each other and we both knew that.

"What the hell is your problem? Why won’t you just fucking admit how you feel? Admit that you still love me! Admit that you were wrong to leave me all those months ago!" I demanded, staring back into her eyes. Was that sorrow and fear in her eyes? My breath caught in my throat at the thought.

Maya scoffed and swallowed thickly as she tried to move away from me. I just put my arms up and took a step forward, caging her against the wall. I could feel our bodies responding to our close proximity, each passing second with her body touching mine turned me on. I needed her in so many ways and by that moan when my erection pressed into her thigh, she felt the same way.

“Matt I—“

I couldn’t hear the rest of her words. I needed her to see reason so I leaned forward and stopped her words with my lips. I kisser her hard, my hands snaking up and pulling her towards me by the hair. Maya gasped when a shock of electricity ran through when our lips touched and I took the opportunity to let our tongues dance.God she tasted so damned good and I was glad to see that she didn’t pull away. For a moment our tongues battled for dominance in sheer bliss. When I pulled away we were both breathless and I had to know the truth.

“Tell me that you didn’t feel that!” I raged “I dare you to say you don’t love me!”

Notes