Water and Salt

We’re walking towards the restaurant we’re supposed to have dinner with the Williams and the Millers and I still don’t understand why Gates decided to agree to the invite. Why did he have to do this to us? I shake my head to myself and looked around, taking a deep breath. It’s Christmas time and Christmas time is always Christmas time, even in California. Yes, we might not get snow and all the typical Christmas things but it’s still that perfect time of the year and it’s probably the only good thing about today.

As soon as we arrive, they’re standing there in their expensive clothes. I quickly look over at Zacky who’s wearing some clothes way too elegant for Avenged Sevenfold and I wonder where the hell he got them from or when he bought them. Probably when his sister got married but the point is, why did he have them with him today? It’s not like the party we were supposed to attend required some particular outfit! Whatever. I slightly move my head when Mr. Williams and Mr. Miller greet us, then I follow everyone inside. I glance at Penelope and frown as she leans towards Jimmy: the more I get to see her and spend time with her, the more I realize my first impression of her was completely wrong. She isn’t that innocent and nice anymore and I wonder if maybe she’s always been like this, even back in the elevator, and I simply made up an opinion of her. Who knows.

Anyway, we walk into the restaurant and Shadows almost hits me as he smiles at Mrs. Miller while opening the door for her. The woman doesn’t seem to be very impressed by his dimples and neither am I. I snort as I follow them inside. The restaurant is so quiet that I’m afraid we all, Williams and Millers included, got the wrong address or something. Why is nobody really speaking in this place? And why isn’t there even some music? So strange…
Even Jimmy is confused. “What kind of a place is this?”

“Can’t you see?” Brian whispers as he keeps his typical smile on his lips. “It’s a crypt.”

I can’t agree more. I look around and it seems like many Williams and Millers are filling that place and I don’t like it. It’s… Stupid.

“If you will follow me, please. Your table will be ready in a few minutes.”

Brian, Jimmy, Shadows and I jump as we hear this low voice behind us and as I turn around, I see a men dressed up as penguin motioning us to follow him. As we do, I realize that we’re not exactly in the restaurant anymore. I mean, we’re still in the restaurant but there’s an open space on one side and from here we can see the ocean. I look around to see if there’s a sign or something that forbids me to smoke and when I see nothing, I smile to myself. At least I can smoke! As soon as I light up my cigarette, I feel some eyes on me and when I glance up, I notice Mrs. Miller and Mrs. Williams staring at me as if I just killed a puppy or something. I raise my eyebrows but I decide to say nothing. It’s not worth it. They despise me, my hair, my cigarette, my whole existence possibly even in the same way I despise them. At least it’s a mutual feeling.

Thankfully, the two women and their husbands notice somebody on the other side of the restaurant. “Excuse us, but we really need to go say hi.” Mrs. Williams says, bringing the girls with him. Penelope, before getting up, slowly move her hand close to Jimmy’s crotch. I snort for the second time in four minutes, but Jimmy barely notice me or Penelope because he’s too busy ordering a drink.

I see her first because this is what happens all the time. I see her and I hear her warm, smooth voice.

“Isn’t that little Baker?”

Little Baker? I glance up and I notice them, a family of three: him (old), her (old), her.

“Zack?” She says, almost whispering, her eyes wide open. I think she’s surprised. Zacky turns around and chokes on his own drink. He looks straight into her hazel eyes then looks at long, blonde hair that is falling on her shoulders, her extremely long eyelashes, her beautiful pink lips that opening in a wide, sweet smile show her wide, perfectly straight teeth. Her long legs are moving towards us, making her blue dress wave around her. She stops right in front of Zacky, who’s staring at her like Adam stared at Eve for the first time. Or something like that, I guess. I know nothing about it. I know for sure that he looks like he’s never seen a woman before and that’s when Brian tries to help him a bit saying, “It’s a woman.” I nod without taking my eyes off her. “I think so too.”

“Zack?” She asked again before doing something no one expected her to do. She pouts and in right in that moment, Zacky’s eyes get wide. Apparently her pout or her voice reminded him of something.

“Gin.” He says.

“Yup. Two gins, please!” Brian says, taking the opportunity to order something to drink.
Zacky shakes his head, “No,” he says, pointing his finger to the girl in front of him. “This is Gin.”

Gin and Zacky stare at each other for a couple of seconds, probably wondering whether to hug or not. Oh God, I’m glad this hasn’t happened to me. I hate moments like that, when you don’t know whether you should do something or not so you just stand there in awkward silence. Suddenly, Gin decides to wrap her arms around his neck, letting him hug her back.

She smiles and slowly pulls away from him. “It’s been so long, how’ve you been?” She asks, the happiness in her voice is so beautiful that even I feel happy for this meeting. And I’ve never seen her before. How strange, huh? “I graduated from Yale, do you believe it?”

“Of course I do. I never graduated, though. I play in a band!” Zacky says and I chuckle nervously. Why do I feel uncomfortable all of a sudden? Because she graduated from Yale?
No. I mean, I’ve never cared about school anyway.

Gin smiles happily again, “Oh, I know. You all are in the band, right? I’ve seen you live a couple of times. So good, guys!”

I raise my eyebrows. Again, we’re all surprised. She doesn’t look like an Avenged Sevenfold fan either. No one in this restaurant looks like an Avenged Sevenfold fan, actually.

“Why haven’t you stopped by?” Zacky asks.

She laughs. Oh my God, her laughs. It’s one of the most beautiful sounds ever. “Are you serious? What did you expect me to do? Try to get in the backstage and say ‘Hi, Zacky. Do you remember me? I used to run naked in your backyard when we were kids’?”

I hold back a chuckle while he shrugs, “Why not?”

Gin licks her lips and tilts her head to the side. “I’m not sure, actually.”

Finally, I decide to clear my throat so he could introduce us to her. “Oh, right. Do you know them? This is Matt…”

Shadows probably wants a wall or something so he can lean against it and show all his sex appeal but he simply gives her a wide smile. She likes his dimples, apparently. “Of course, it’s nice to meet you.” She says, smiling at him.

“And Brian…”

Brian says nothing but “How’s it going?”. Really. Just that. But he says that raising his chin a bit, like the dickhead he is. She laughs. Of course she does. “Brian Haner’s son, right? Your father is great.”

“That’s Johnny. My brother’s friend.”

She laughs again and I simply smile.

“And that’s Jimmy.”

This time she doesn’t laugh and her smile slightly disappear. “James Sullivan.” She says and the way she says his name makes me wonder if there’s something I don’t know about her, or even Jimmy for that matter. She looks… Hurt? Surprised? Either way, she doesn’t say anything. Jimmy, on the other side, looks at her with a frown on his face, probably trying to remember something. “Have we slept together and I haven’t called you back?”

Gin’s smile appears again on her lips. “I don’t think I remember. Do you think I’d remember if we slept together?” She asks and Brian can’t help but start laughing at her words. I chuckle as I stare at Jimmy who doesn’t move, apparently not hurt by her words.

“I don’t think I remember you.”

“I’m one year younger than Johnny.” She says, pointing a finger at me. I smile, liking that someone is finally bringing me into the conversation. “But it’s quite possible you remember my sister Lena.” Okay, I’m not part of this conversation anymore.

Brian raises his eyebrows and bites his lips, holding back a loud laugh. Zacky looks at Gin and Jimmy nods, “Of course.” He says right before Matt whispers, “Girl I know.” Jimmy, like pretty much everyone else know that name and Gin’s sister. I’ve never met her. She was long gone before I joined the band or even met them all. All I know is that she’s one of Jimmy’s ex girlfriends. An important one. So important that he ended up writing a song about her. Girl I know.

“Why don’t I remember you?” Jimmy asks and I think he’s trying to change the subject.

“My parents always kept me away from Lena’s friends, then I ended up studying in an all girls’ school, then Yale happened, I lived abroad for a while and here I am. Like I said, my parents didn’t want me to… How can I say this? End up like my sister. She’s been quite a trouble when she was a teenager, but already know this.” She says with her soft voice.
There’s no bitterness in the tone of her voice. I wonder how this is possible.

“How is she?” Jimmy asks, keeping her eyes on Gin.

“Very good. She’s married and living in Tennessee with her husband.”

Jimmy doesn’t say anything, he simply nods. I really think he doesn’t know what to say. I can’t blame him. This is one shitty awkward situation. It’s Zacky the one who saves him.

“Tennessee? No way. What is she doing down there?”

“She’s working as a freelance photographer. She loves it so I guess it’s great.” Gin says before motioning for her parents to come. “Don’t worry. They don’t know you’re the guy Lena has described as the asshole who ruined her life forever. She’s never told them anything, but she did tell me things, hence why I know about you. Oh, Almost Easy is beautiful, by the way.” How does she do that? Speaking about so many different things as if they were the easiest things ever? And how can she be so nice?

Her mother walks towards us and immediately hugs Zacky. “Look at you! So grown up with tattoos and piercing everywhere!” She said, giving him a big smile. Unlike Mrs. Williams and Mrs. Miller, Gin’s mother doesn’t seem to be disgusted by our tattoos or piercings.

“Hello?”

Oh, there they are. The Williams and the Millers are back. Finally. I’m starting to starving and I can’t wait to leave this shitty restaurant. The look on their faces show all their confusion and the two young girls seem to be frightened by Gin.

“Miss Collins?”

“Penelope! Addison! What are you doing here?”

I can see Penelope trying to move as close as possible to Jimmy, but sadly, Gin’s in the way. I smile a little.

“We’re having dinner with them.” Addison says, pointing a finger to us. The Millers and the Williams share a few words with Gin and her parents and I understand that Gin has recently moved back to Huntington Beach and is working at the same school Addison and Penelope are attending, working as a literature teacher.

They tell us our table is ready.

“Wait,” Zacky says to Gin, taking a step towards her. “Give me your phone number, so we can meet up now that you’re here.”

Her parents stop and she smiles widely. She quickly grabs a napkin from the counter of the bar and a pen from the waiter’s pocket, who’s quite shocked about what’s just happened and is now waiting for her to finish using his pen. She gives the napkin to Zacky then smiles at us again. “Bye, guys.” Then her gaze meet Jimmy’s. “Bye, Almost Easy.”

We watch her turn around as her blue dress waves around and it’s such a beautiful scene that Shadows has to hit me in the side with his elbow. Clearly, he misunderstood. I’m far interested in her as a person than just because of her good looks. There’s something about her, about the way she speaks that it’s so damn fascinating and I really wouldn’t mind seeing her again.

Notes

Hi! Here I am with the second chapter, although this is only half of the original chapter as I had to cut it in half because I thought it was way too long. Hope you don't mind. I think I'll end up changing the name of the chapters as well since these aren't exactly chapters, I don't know if what I say makes sense haha

Anyway! I hope you liked this chapter and stay tuned for the next one :D

I'd like to thank Hollie (thank you for being such an avid reader or my stories) and seventhtrumpet for being the first (and so far only) people who commented my story. It really means a lot <3