Broken Arrow

It was September 27, my 20th Birthday. I sat around a table out in a balcony bar with Trixie, Demi and Krista, who had surprised me with a birthday breakfast. The four of us shared a huge pile of pancakes, including maple syrup and, my personal favourite; sugar and lemon juice. Along with a massive pitcher of orange juice.

"Now that's out of the way." Demi smiled as one of the waiting staff cleared our table. "Happy Birthday." she said, handing me a sparkling pink gift bag.

I opened it, and pulled out what appeared to be a bundle of pink and black fabric. I unraveled it to reveal a beautiful pink and black strapless dress. The top half was entirely covered in hot pink sequins, which sparkled in the sunlight. The skirt was black, with black tulle peeping out from the bottom, and a black bow topped off the waistband of the dress. A tag on the inside of the dress read "Betsey Johnson".



"Whoa, Demi, this is a Betsey piece." I gasped. "It must've cost a fortune."
"I'm a great haggler." she winked. "It had you written all over it."
"I love it." I sighed, giving her a warm smile. "Thank you."
"And this is from Jimmy." she said, passing me a small envelope.

I opened it, and pulled out a small photograph. It was from when I first met the boys, not long after moving (Well, running away) to Orange County. All of them wore black band shirts, the most notable being Zacky's Misfits tee. Back when Jimmy and Johnny had yet to get tattooed, and Brian... That was the Brian I remembered; his hair was just past his ears and he wasn't heavily tattooed yet. The photo was slightly faded and a little bit frayed around the edges, but it brought a smile to my face.



I turned it over, and found Jimmy had written a message on the back;
"Hey Squirt, Happy Birthday. I was digging through some old shit and I found this photo. I know you're still adjusting to being back home and you've been through a lot lately, so I thought this photo would take you back to happier times. Whenever you feel down, and we're not around, take a look at this picture and remember the five idiots who love you to death and would do anything for you. As long as you are a part of the Avenged Sevenfold family, you are never alone..."

"This is sweet, tell Jimmy I said thank you."
"And this one's from me." Krista said, passing me another gift bag, black this time. "I had it custom made for you by a good friend of mine."

I opened it and pulled out a bundle of neon pink leather, unrolling it to find it was a heavily studded leather jacket. It looked like it was worth a fortune and must have taken hours to make. The attention to detail was incredible, it was a frikken masterpiece.



"Holy shit..." I breathed.
"A Toxic Vision original, hand cut, sewn, and studded." she grinned.
"Sharon made this?" I gaped. "Sharon fucking Toxic?"
"The one and only." Krista winked.
"Dude..." I was lost for words.
"Now you have a leather jacket that really suits your personality."
"It's fucking incredible, thank you so, sooo much." I was close to tears.
"And to top it off, I got you these." Trixie spoke up, handing me a package, and a big box wrapped in silver wrapping paper and topped off with a pink gift bow.

I tore open the package first, which contained a neon pink leather handbag with a long, crossbody strap, covered in silver spikes. A short chain enabled it to be worn on the shoulder if one so desired it. I was in desperate need of a new handbag, so it was perfect.



The box was next; I ripped open the silver paper to find a white shoebox with the name "Jeffrey Campbell" printed on the lid. I opened the box, peeling back the white tissue paper, and my eyes went wide at the beautiful sight before my eyes; Jeffrey Campbell Spiked Lita's. Gorgeous heeled boots that laced up and were covered in spikes. I had only ever dreamed of owning these shoes, and had almost bought cheap knockoffs of them multiple times, until I remembered I was no good at walking in heels. - Which wasn't a problem now, thanks to Trixie.



"I have always wanted these..." I admitted. "I just couldn't walk in heels before, and they were expensive as hell."
"Well." Trixie grinned. "Now you can, and now you have a pair."
"I told her your shoe size." Demi smirked, winking at me.
"You guys..." I was in awe. "I can't thank you enough, this is all so goddamn perfect."
"Our pleasure." Krista smiled.
"We basically all banded together and bought you a whole new outfit." Demi said. "Gotta get you suited up for the California lifestyle, my friend."
"You spoil me far too much." I giggled. "I'm gonna turn into a fucking Diva."

***



Later that afternoon I sat in the living area of the Hotel Suite I shared with Brian and Johnny, replying to the hundreds of "Happy Birthday" messages and posts I had gotten on Facebook. Brian emerged from the bedroom, fresh out of the shower, rubbing a towel against his damp hair.

"Hey you."
I looked up from my phone. "What's up?"
"Go change into something nice." he grinned. "Something girly and glamorous."
"Why?" I smirked, a suspicious look in my eye. "What're you up to, Haner?"
"It's your Birthday, so I'm taking you out."
"How very charming of you." I teased.
"Shut up." He rolled his eyes.
"Where are we going?" I probed.
"It's a surprise." he smirked. "Now go change."
"Yes, Daddy." I giggled.
"Please do not fucking call me that!" he cringed.
"Sorry, Daddy." I sniggered.
"Stop!" he snapped playfully, smacking my ass as I passed him.

I changed into the clothes the girls had given me earlier; everything matched perfectly and I finally felt like I was worthy of walking the streets of Vegas. I curled my hair, sweeping my bangs to the side now that they had begun to grow out. My roots were starting to come through, but I could deal with that for now.

I heard Brian enter the room as I was putting the finishing touches on my makeup and looked up from my reflection in the mirror to see him standing behind me. The breath left my lungs at the sight of him; He wore a black, longsleeved, button down shirt, and a pair of subtly pinstriped black dress pants. He'd left the first few buttons of his shirt undone, exposing a bit of his beautifully tanned chest. His sleeves were rolled up a little, allowing the silver watch he wore on one arm to be seen. His eyes were rimmed in his usual black eyeliner, and he'd actually brushed his hair for once, leaving it looking as soft as ever.



"You clean up nice, Haner." I commented.
"Thanks, turn around, let me get a look at you." he smiled.

I quickly sprayed my face with setting spray, waving my hands in front of my face to dry it, and turned to face him. I watched his shoulders rise as he sucked in a deep breath, his eyes roaming my body up and down. He let out a small wolf-whistle, before biting down on his bottom lip.

"Well damn." he smirked. "Is now a bad time to say Jack fucked up?" he chuckled.
I blushed, tilting my head so my hair fell in my face. I shivered as I felt his fingers brush my hair back.
He lifted my face with his thumb and forefinger. "You look incredible."
"Thank you." I smiled.
He licked over his lips, eyeing mine off as he did so. "C'mon, Birthday girl, let's go." he turned slightly, offering his arm to me.
I beamed at him, taking his arm and allowing him to lead me out of the suite.

As we emerged from the Hotel, Brian's rental Dodge Challenger awaited us. He opened the door for me, motioning for me to get in. I rolled my eyes at his charming gesture as I got in the car. He closed the door, getting into the driver's seat and turning the key in the ignition. He turned on the car stereo, and Def Leppard's "Pour Some Sugar On Me" started to play.

"Oh, hell no." he laughed, turning it off.
"Hey!" I slapped his hand and switched it back on. "I love this fucking song!"
"You would, you're a girl." he rolled his eyes.
"It's my Birthday." I pouted. "I get to choose the music."
He sighed and rolled his eyes again. "Okay, fine."
"Thank you." I grinned, leaning over to kiss his cheek.

Pour some sugar on me, ooh in the name of love. Pour some sugar on me, c'mon fire me up. Pour your sugar on me, ooh I can't get enough. I'm hot, sticky sweet, from my head to my feet, yeah...

We arrived at The Venetian not long after, and Brian stopped the car, darting around to the passenger's side and opening my door. He flashed me a warm smile, holding his hand out for me as I stepped out. His hand on my lower back, he led me down to The Grand Canal Shoppes, where the sound of singing Gondoliers met my ears.



"You're taking me on a Gondola ride?" I raised an eyebrow. "That's unlike you."
"What?" he protested. "A guy can't do something sweet once in awhile?"
"Awfully romantic gesture, Bri." I teased.
"Will you just shut up and enjoy this?" he laughed, leading me down a small flight of steps, where a two-seater Gondola awaited.
"Careful, watch your step." the Gondolier, a charming man with bright blue eyes and blonde hair smiled and took my hand, helping me into the boat.

Brian sat down opposite me, and the Gondolier began to steer the small boat and sing. I couldn't tell you what exactly he was singing, I didn't speak Italian, but his voice was absolutely lovely and only added to the beauty of our surroundings. It really did feel like we were in Italy, floating through Venice.

"Brian, this is amazing..." I breathed, taking in the sights.
"Is that a thank you?" he smiled, leaning forward and taking my hands in his own.
"Yes, thank you." I returned his smile. "This is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me."
"The nicest thing a man's ever done for you, you mean?" he smirked.
I shook my head and rolled my eyes. "Don't get cocky."
"Probably true, though."
I sighed, shrugging my shoulders. "Well, yeah."

All too soon, the gondola ride ended, and Brian held my hand as I stepped out of the boat. He led me back to his car, making no protests when Motley Crue's "Same Ol' Situation" began to play on the radio, as we both shared a mutual love for their music. We pulled into the carpark at The Paris Las Vegas and he led me over the little bridge leading to the mock-up of the iconic Eiffel Tower.

We passed couples locking their padlocks onto the bridge, kissing the key and throwing it into the water below. My heart sank into my stomach, remembering when I used to imagine doing the same thing, at the real bridge, in Paris, with Jack. A dream that would never come true, now.

All these months later, and he still has a hold on me...

I clung tighter onto Brian's arm as he led me into the elevator. I hugged him as we stepped inside and his arms wrapped around me, squeezing me tight as I buried my face in his chest. I sniffled, a few small tears spilling from my eyes and onto his shirt. He pulled back a little, wiping my face, concern in his expression.

"What's wrong?"
"Just the padlock bridge..." I frowned. "I used to dream of doing that with Jack, ya know, at the real bridge, in Paris."
"I didn't mean to bring up painful memories." he said, rubbing my arms soothingly.
"I know you didn't, I'm just being stupid."
"You're not stupid." he sighed, lifting my face. "But you're gonna ruin your makeup if you don't turn that frown upside down."
I chuckled. "You're right." I smiled. "Thank you."

The elevator came to a stop and Brian led me out onto the observation deck. We were a good 46-stories above ground and the observation deck wrapped right around the tower, offering a beautiful 360 view of the city. The sun was well on it's way down now, casting a golden glow upon the horizon, plunging the distant mountains into shadow.



I glanced at Brian, his arm resting on the railing beside me. His long hair fluttered in the breeze, the setting sun sending his eyes a bright, golden brown. As broken as I was, as lonely as I felt, when he was around, the hole in my heart was almost filled. I smiled as he noticed me looking at him, screwing his face up in a cheeky smile back at me.

"It's so amazing out here." I said, breathing in deeply. "I almost don't wanna leave..." I exhaled in one long breath. "I just wanna stay here with you."
Brian wrapped an arm around me, resting his hand upon my waist. "Happy Birthday, Ruby." he whispered, kissing the top of my head.

This past week had been an absolute whirlwind, so much had happened. Brian and I had become so close and I knew that everything was going to change when we got back to Orange County. I didn't know if I was ready for that, to go back to the way things were. But I knew it had to, we'd made an agreement, and I wasn't going to risk our friendship over a few too many drinks and a whole lot of fun in Sin City.

Despite it all; as I leaned upon Brian's shoulder and looked out over the brilliant lights of Vegas, a warm feeling washed over me; familiar and dangerously close to, but not quite, like Love.

What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas...

Notes

I feel like I put waaay too many visuals into this chapter but I wanted to show ya'll a bit more of the city and their hotel suite before they leave Vegas. Fucking adore the outfit I created for Ruby and I'm low-key sad I don't own it myself.

And just saying, I feel like this story has one bitchin' soundtrack and I feel like I need to set one up for it on YouTube or Spotify. I get waaay too invested in my fics. But if ya'll want that, let me know and I'll link it next chapter?

This brings me to the end of the pre-planned chapters, but I still have a rough idea of where the story's gonna go from here.

Until next time!! xx