My alarm goes off and I groan. There’s another groan behind me and Zack pulls me in closer while simultaneously shoving his head deeper into the pillow. I turn off my alarm, roll to face him and can’t help but smile when I see the position he’s lying in – spread eagle on his stomach, with his left arm draped over me and his right underneath the pillow. Zack has gotten into the habit of crawling into bed with me every night after his parents went to bed. It was nice to have him sleeping next to me, but I was scared we were going to get caught and I would get kicked out, or worse, he would get in trouble. When I brought this up to Zack, however, he seemed unfazed, so I tried not to let it bother me.

“Got to get up,” I mumble. Zack gives me another groan in response, this time it was muffled by the pillow. I rub his arm and after a moment he shifts his head slightly and peeks at me with one eye. Dear God, he was beautiful.

“I don’t want to,” he mumbles.

“Mm,” I scoot closer to him and he lifts his head to give me a kiss. “You have to go back to your room and I have to go to work.”

He drapes his leg over me and pulls me even closer to him. “But what if we don’t do those things and just stay here all day.”

“Then you’ll miss band practice and Matt will probably kick your ass,” I tell him.

He doesn’t reply for a moment and then he says, “Yeah. You’re right.”

I get up and he does too. Before I can walk to my closet he grabs my shirt and pulls me into a kiss. “Have a good day, okay?” He tells me. “I love you.”

“I love you too. I get off at three. I’ll probably come here and change and then go to Matt's,” I tell him. He nods sleep still coating his face and walks out of my room and into his.

I continue to get ready for work. These early hours were killing me, but I picked up every available shift I could. Since I missed out on two weeks of work because of my breakdown, that meant I missed two weeks’ worth of money and I was two weeks behind on my savings to leave town on my eighteenth birthday.

I wasn’t sure if I wanted to leave, though. If things could stay like this, if Zack and I could remain happy, if Eli would remain out of my life, I could do this. I could stay, but only if it stayed like this. I don’t know if I would survive without Zack. I hadn’t made many friends outside of school besides Zack's friends, so if I lost Zack I would lose everything. I would lose everyone but Eli and…I would rather be dead. Obviously.

The Saturday morning rush is later than the rest of the week due to everyone sleeping in, but it eventually comes and goes. Drake goes to the back to do his weekly inventory and I have the floor to myself until the lunch rush. I spend my time wiping and re-wiping counters and taking care of any of the customer's needs while avoiding the clock.

Sometime in the middle of the lunch rush, Michael Taylor walked in with one of his friends. I tried to ignore him but since Drake still hadn’t made it back to the front of the store, I eventually had to talk to him.

“Hey, beautiful,” he grins as he approaches the counter.

I give him a glare. “What can I get you, Michael?”

“How about a strawberry smoothie and your number?” He grins.

“One strawberry smoothie coming right up,” I scoff and turn away from him to make it.

“So, how about that date you owe me?” He calls over the machine I use to blend his smoothie. Instead of replying, I roll my eyes. His friend is watching us at a table near the door. Michael grins as I turn off the machine and pour his smoothie into a to-go cup. “Oh, that’s for here.”

I raise a brow and set the smoothie down on the counter. “Do you enjoy harassing me because you know I’m dating Zack?”

“I’m not harassing you. I just think you deserve someone better than some wannabe punk rocker,” he tells me with a slight smirk.

I scoff again. “Oh, please. You don’t even know me. You weren’t even interested in me until I started dating Zack.”

“Oh, so you pay attention to what I'm interested in, huh?” He asks.

“Can you be more arrogant?”

Michael laughs. “Damn, you’re feisty. So, I’ll pick you up at eight? I was thinking dinner, maybe a movie and then we can have dessert back at my place. I would say your place, but I hear your brother is Eli Davis and that is not a dude I’d want to mess with…”

He winks. I resist the urge to vomit. “Your total is $5.61.”

“Ooh, still playing hard to get, I see.” He lays down a $50 bill. “I like it. Keep the change.”

I was conflicted as he walked out the door, his friend following him. A part of me wanted to chase him out the door, tell him to keep his $44.39 and to leave me the hell alone…but the other part of me reminded myself that I was two weeks short in savings. So, I pocketed the money and helped the next person in line.

The lunch rush ended shortly after and the rest of my shift went by smoothly. I had fifteen minutes left when suddenly Zack ran in, face red and slightly sweaty. “Sheridan!” he exclaimed.

“Zack?” I half laugh. “What’d you do, run here?”

“We got fuckin’ signed!” He cheers. At his curse word, I glanced around the café for customers. There was only one other person in the café and he was wearing headphones, not paying attention to me or Zack. Then, I realized what he said.

“Wait, what?”

He grins and grins. He grins so hard it’s nearly impossible to see the rest of his face. “Babe, I fuckin’ did it. The band, we fuckin’ did it. We have a record label wanting to sign us. They already mailed the contract. All we have to do is sign it! Look!”

Zack pulls out an envelope that’s been folded in half out of his pocket. He takes the piece of paper out of the envelope, and with shaking hands, shows it to me. Good Life Recordings wanted to sign Avenged Sevenfold. There it was, on paper.

“Holy shit!” I run from behind the counter and jump in his arms. “You did it! Oh my God, you did it! I’m so proud of you.”

“Thanks. I can’t believe it. I’m just so…fuck. It’s like a dream. I just can’t believe it. They said we can start recording as soon as we graduate high school,” he tells me as he lets me go.

“Wow, Zack. That is so awesome! God, I just…I’m so proud of you.” I was honestly at a loss for words. His dreams were coming true. He was going to be able to do what he loved for the rest of his life.

“Thanks,” he breathed and then he kissed me. “I have to go,” he tells me when we separate. “The guys and I want to get this mailed out as soon as possible but I just wanted to tell you before it all happened. We have plans tonight, so don’t think you’re going to sit in your room all night and study. We’ve got to celebrate, so Johnny’s Bar, tonight, with the guys.”

“Okay,” I nodded, smiling. Of course, I would put studying aside for this. “I’ll see you later at home?”

He nods and kisses me quickly before practically running out of the café.

---

Later that night, Zack could barely sit still while I got ready for the celebration. He was so excited and happy, it was hard to pay attention to myself and my make up. I just wanted to watch him be happy. I had never seen him this happy before and I just wanted to enjoy it.

Zina was working so Zack and I walked to Johnny’s Bar. Well, I walked, Zack practically skipped. “God, I can’t fuckin’ wait, Sheridan. I can’t wait to have our record in our hands, to…to play in front of hundreds – no, thousands of people! To…”

“To have groupies?” I joke.

Zack laughs and turns to me with a smirk. “Well, you know that is one of the perks of being a damn good-looking Rockstar.”

I scoff with a smile and slap him jokingly on the arm. “You ass.”

“Don’t worry, babe. You’ll always be my main groupie,” he says, kissing me quickly.

“Oh, I will huh?” I laugh.

At this point, we’re already at the bar. Zack holds the door open for me. “Damn straight, baby.” He gently pats my ass as I walk in.

A group to our immediate right cheers as soon as we enter. Most, if not all, of the group were already there including some of the other bands the guys hang around. Zack grinned and waved.

“Let’s get one thing right,” I smile at him before he can walk over.

“What’s that? he asks.

I grab him by the collar of the shirt and pull him down to my level, still smiling. “I will always be more than just a groupie.”

Zack smiles too and kisses me. “You’re damn right.”

Zack is engulfed in hugs and slaps on the back as we approach the crowd. Jimmy grabbed me into a hug as soon as his long arms could reach me.

“Congrats, Jimmy!” I tell him.

“One step closer to being the best drummer in the world!” He cheered and then handed me a shot of whiskey. I took it and then began hugging the rest of the band members. Zack was swallowed by the crowd and I decided to let him celebrate with his friends and instead turned to Michelle and Val.

“Sheridan, we were just about to get another drink. You want to come?” Val asked.

Michelle linked her arm with mine before I could answer. “You have to! You’re behind in drinks.”

Michelle and the rest of the girls instantly forgave me once they were told the truth. They apologized immensely, and it took some time but eventually, we went back to normal. Gena mostly stayed away from the group when I was around which I was fine with. Everyone else might have forgiven her for her little “mistake” but I knew better. She had told the girls that she was afraid that Eli would come after her if she told them the truth, so she told them the first lie that came to mind.

I couldn’t be mad at them for forgiving her. After all, they have known her for years; they’ve only known me for months. They had a history with her; I guess you could say she was a part of their original group of friends before she and Zack broke up. It did, however, bother me that Zack seemed to be forgiving her slowly.

“What can I get you?” the bartender asked me.

I pull my fake ID out of my jean pocket and slide it to him. “A double Jack and coke, please.” The bartender glances at my ID and then hands it back to me with a nod. “Actually, can I get two of those, please?”

Again, the bartender nods and begins preparing my drinks. After he’s done, I pay him the money I owe and then follow Michelle and Valary back over to the group. This time, they lead me to Brian and Zack. Zack has a cigarette in between his lips and an empty shot glass in his hand.

“Trade you,” I hand him one of the Jack and Cokes.

“Mm,” he grins, taking it. He removes the cigarette from his lips with his free hand and takes a sip. “I knew I loved you for some reason.”

“Uh, huh,” I tell him, taking the cigarette from his fingers and sticking it in between my lips.

The next few hours are a blast. Gena showed up after a while, but she never approached me, thankfully. I tried to space my drinks out enough, so I didn’t get drunk and embarrass myself. Plus, drinking made me horny and I didn’t want to get myself all worked up and not be able to do anything about it.

Everyone was having a blast playing pool, drinking, making out, playing darts and just talking and celebrating. There was just one thing missing…

“Ugh, come on boys!” Leana shouted over the rock song playing on the jukebox. “You need to play something a girl can dance too!” She changes the song to a more upbeat song I had never heard before.

As soon as Michelle and Val heard it though, they cheered and began to move some tables out of the way to create a dancefloor. “Come dance with me,” I stick out my hand for Zack.

Zack bites his lip and shakes his head, but I nod and eventually, he takes my hand I lead him out on the makeshift dancefloor. “Oh, you so owe me,” he whispers in my ear.

I laugh and turn so my back is against him and then start to dance against him. Zack rests his hands on my hips. As I move against him, his fingertips brush against my skin and I wonder if I would ever stop feeling that fire when he touched me.

I feel Zack kiss my neck and I reach up and caress his neck before turning in his arms. I instantly lock my lips with his. Zack deepens the kiss, pulling me closer to him. Before the kiss could get too heated, though, I pulled away and turn back around and began to grind against him again.

Close to the end of the song, Zack pulled away and I turned around to face him, confused. “Uh...” Zack starts, pulling at his jeans. “I’ll be back.”

I snicker, say “oops” more to myself than to anyone and then glance around. Our group was scattered. Matt and Lacey were at the bar. Johnny was passed out at a table. Michelle, Leana, and Val were dancing. Gena was over by the pool tables with Jimmy and Brian. I shrug to myself and continue dancing as the song changes. I close my eyes suddenly feeling pretty tipsy and sway to the song.

The second song is nearly over when Zack returns. His hands are colder than they were before, and I wonder if he had stepped outside to calm himself down. Before I can ask him, he moves his hands to my lower stomach and attempts to tuck his hands into the front of my jeans.

My body freezes and my stomach falls to my toes and I turn around to push him away. “What are you…”

“Whoa, relax,” Michael grinned.

I backed away from him, “Leave me alone Michael.”

Michael took a step towards me and I looked around anxiously, but it was crowded and no one was paying attention. “It’s just a dance,” he said grabbing my hand. “Come on, I paid $45 for this. You owe me a lot more than this.”

I scoff. “What?” He pulls me against him and tries to kiss me but I push him off me. “Michael, stop.”

“C’mon, what Zack doesn’t know won’t hurt him,” he tells me, pressing his lips against mine.
“Hey!”

Michael pulls away from me and turns to the voice. Next thing I know, he’s on the ground and Brian is on top of him. “Yo, dude! What the fuck?” Michael yells, shielding his face from Brian’s punches.

“Brian!” Michelle shrieks as the bartender marches up with a baseball bat. He tears Brian off of Michael.

“You two, take it outside!” He yells. Michael gets up on his feet and goes to throw a punch in Brian’s direction, but the bartender stops him. “Don’t even think about it, punk,” he threatens, pointing the bat at him. “Outside. Now. Both of you.”

The boys barely made it to the front door before Michael finally threw that punch, catching Brian off guard. The blow caused Brian to stagger backward, where he lost his balance and stumbled to the ground, landing on his butt.

“Hey, what the hell?” I turned to see Zack standing there, another cigarette in his hand. Brian is on his feet before Zack even finishes his question.

“Homeboy made some moves on Sheridan,” Brian tells him.

Michael laughs. “That bitch owes me more than just some goddamn kiss after the money I gave her.”

At this point, the rest of the crew and even some random people from the bar joined us outside. Some were concerned for their friends and others were just there for the entertainment.

“You took money from him?” Zack asked me.

“He left me a tip today on a smoothie,” I told him.

Michael laughs again. “A fucking $45 tip on a shitty ass smoothie. You fucking knew what that money was for.”

“Wait,” Jimmy laughs, “so, are you admitting that you paid for sex? Or…tried to?”

“Damn dude, that’s pretty pathetic,” Matt joined in.

“You do know her brother is a cop, right?” Val laughed. Zack and I made eye contact.

Michael laughs nervously. “Whatever man. You’re right, she would have probably given it up for free. Fucking slut has probably slept with every single one of you. I mean, we all know who she’s dating so we know how low her standards are.”

Zack began to approach Michael, but I was closer. Before anyone had enough time to react I pulled my arm all the way back and then threw it and all my body weight forward, hitting him directly in the face.

“Whoa!”

“Holy shit!”

“Fuck, Sheridan. Are you okay?” Zack reached me as Michael stumbled backward holding his nose. Dark red liquid seeped through his fingers as he howled in pain.

“Ow,” I said, shaking my hand. “That really hurt.”

“That was fucking awesome!” Johnny yelled.

“You fucking cunt!” Michael yelled. He attempted to approach me, but Zack blocked his way.

“Go home before you really regret it,” Zack growled.

The guy I saw earlier in the café with Michael advances with his fists clenched but instead of throwing a punch he glares at me and Zack and then leads Michael away.

Zack turns towards me as the crowd begins to disperse. “Jesus Christ, Sheridan. Are you okay? I could have taken care of him.”

“I know,” I tell him. “But I was closer, and he pissed me off.” I was so tired of men thinking they could just treat me however they wanted to.

“You shouldn’t let guys like him get under your skin. It’s not worth it,” he tells me.

I give him a look of disbelief. “Oh, that’s coming from you? Really?”

“You’re right,” he kisses me on the forehead. “Come on, let’s go home.”

I shake my head. “No, I want to stay. This is your celebration. Let’s stay.”

Zack shakes his head, too. “We need to go put some ice on your hand.”

“It feels fine. It just hurt for a moment.”

Zack laughs and kisses me. “That’s just the adrenaline and because you’re a little tipsy. Come on.” I give in and Zack grabs my hand while he waves to the others. “Bye guys! See you tomorrow!”

“Bye!” They call back in unison.

“Hey, Brian!” I call. He turns back to me. “Thank you.”

He gives me a smile. “You’re welcome.”

Notes

Okay, so first thing first: the lovely Kimmie mentioned that she wanted to see what Brian thought of what Zack revealed to him in the last chapter and i thought it was a fantastic idea. So, with that being said i went ahead and added a conversation between Sheridan and Brian in the last chapter to give you guys a little peek into how Brian felt. It also works, because it helps this ending (which was already written) make a little more sense. So, if you want you can go back to the last chapter and read it again with the updated paragraph. BUT, i also made it easy for you guys and you can click here and read the snippet. just don't forget to come back here and comment/rate/subscribe! Also, remember that the snippet is based right after Sheridan leaves Gena's house.

Anyway, thank you so so much for reading!
Thank you to the following for commenting!
Kimmie: I hope you enjoy the little snippet of Brian revealing how he felt about the whole Sheridan thing. i know it's not much but when I rewrite that chapter (which i plan on doing eventually) I'll definitely go more in depth with it!
countzackula6661: Thank you so much! I'm so glad you're enjoying everything so far! Hope this update was soon enough for you!

Title credit: Faber Drive “G-Get Up and Dance”