Pulling Me Through

Chapter One

Riley's POV

"Come on Jake please let me go" I begged.

"Why do you want to come to band practice?" he asked.

"I just want to see" I said. He shook his head but after a few more minutes of begging he took me. He knocked on Ashley's door and within a few seconds the door was open and we were inside. We went down some steps and were in the basement. I saw Jinxx tapping his guitar and CC was twirling his drum sticks. There was a new person here who I hadn't met before. He was staring off into thin air and he was playing with the mic in his hands.

"Hi I'm Andy" He greeted. He took my hand and shook.

"I'm Riley" I introduced. His hand was warm but the smile he gave me was warmer. He was wearing all black and his hair was slightly shorter than shoulder length. His blue eyes bore into my emerald eyes. He pulled away from me and I sat down in the seat in the corner of the room.

"Come on let's go" Jake shouted. They took their places and began playing Knives and Pens. Andy's voice was amazing. His screams were like electric currents getting shot through my veins. I watched him in awe and every time he finished singing a line he would look at me and smile. Too soon it was over and the group was dispersing. Jake came up to me and pulled me of the seat. He picked me up and swirled me around.

"What did ya think?" He asked.

"You were great" I said. Jake swirled me around one more time and put me down. I was slightly dizzy and I staggered back and almost fell but Andy caught me. One arm went around my waist and the other held my hand. He looked at me and smiled.

"Watch yourself" He said before leaving. I was so shocked by the fact that he had just done that in front of my brother but Jake hadn't even noticed anything he just smiled at Andy and walked out. Jinxx looked up and smiled at me.

"I haven't seen you in a while" He laughed.

"Well you know how Jake gets embarrassed" I sighed. Uncomfortable silence fell over and Jinxx gave a small wave and then left. I never knew where they went afterwards but my guess was that they would end up cooking pizza. I was alone with Andy now. He was just watching me and saying nothing.

"So then" I said awkwardly. Andy gave a small chuckle.

"We should try and get to know each other" Andy said.

"I agree" I said.

"Well you should come over to mine tonight we can talk" He said.

"Sure ok" I laughed. It was so out of the blue. He pulled out a pen and paper and scribbled something down and handed it to me. When I looked at it I found it was his address and phone number. I blinked in astonishment and when I looked up Andy was leaving the room. I followed him and went into the kitchen where the rest of the band members were. We sat and ate and talked.

Andy's POV

I got a shock when she came into the room just before we practiced. She was smiling at me and before I knew it I was singing. Every time I finished a line I couldn't help but steal a glance at her. She was so hooked in our music that I almost felt embarrassed. We finished the song quickly and the group went their separate ways but Jake and Jinxx were still here. Jake had gone over to Riley and was swirling her round. I smiled to myself but not when Riley stumbled back. I felt an overwhelming surge of protection and I rushed to her side and steadied her. My arm was around her waist and my other hand was holding onto hers. I steadied her and told her to watch herself. Jake had smiled and laughed but Jinxx came over to Riley. They spoke to each other but I couldn't hear what they were saying and then we were alone. I couldn't stop myself from going over to her. I asked her if she wanted to get to know me and then before I could stop myself I'd rearranged for her to come over to my house and given her my address then I just walked back out.

Riley's POV

We were eating the pizza when Jake checked his watch. He stood up.

"We've got to get home" He said. I knew why our dad would end up getting mad if we stayed out to late. I left with Jake and went home. I went downstairs to where my dad was sitting.

"Hey can I go to a friend's house?" I asked.

"Yeah what time are you getting home?" He asked.

"I don't know it could be really late" I answered. He looked at me but nodded anyway. I smiled at him and ran to my room. I pulled out my phone and punched in Andy's number. It rang twice before he picked up.

"Hello" He said.

"Andy it's Riley" I said.

"Oh hey" He said.

"Can I come now?" I asked.

"Sure you can" He answered and then hung up. I ran downstairs and pulled my shoes on and left the house. Andy's house was only a ten minute walk away and I practically sprinted there. I found the house easily and knocked on the door. He answered and smiled at me. He gestured for me to come in and I followed him. He led me up to his room and pointed at the sofa. I sat down and looked around. We were facing a television and I saw Andy putting something in the DVD player below it. He smiled at me and sat down next to me. I suppressed a groan when I found out that he had put a horror movie on. I hated them but I didn't want to seem stupid so I tried to sit through it. After about twenty minutes the gruesome bits came on. I yelped and spun my head around so that my head was in Andy's chest. He put his arm around me and rubbed my back. I tried to sneak a peek at the television but I just shot my head back at his chest. He was resting his cheek on my head and his arm still hadn't moved from my back. I wrapped mine around his waist and sighed. I could feel a smile crossing my face. Then I fell asleep.

Andy's POV

We sat down on my sofa watching the horror. We hadn't been watching it that long when Riley dug her head onto my chest she clung onto me as though her life depended on it. I put my arm around her and rubbed her back in a comforting way. She had wrapped her arm around my waist and before I knew it she was asleep. I was tired as well so I closed my eyes and lay back but I was careful not to wake Riley and I wanted her to stay near me. I fell asleep too.

I woke up and looked at the clock. It was 3:00 am. I looked around and really took in my surroundings. Riley was lying on top of me and she had her hands on my chest and I had mine wrapped around her waist. She looked so peaceful. She stirred and then opened her eyes and looked at me.

"Sorry" She mumbled and then got off me.

"It's fine" I said. She also looked at the clock and her eyes went wide.

"I've got to get home" She said. She threw herself off the sofa and collected her things.

"Bye" She called. I walked her to the door and opened it for her.

"Goodbye Riley" I said. I kissed her on the cheek. It was only soft and tender but to me there was so much more held in that one kiss. She blushed but smiled that adorable smile that she had. I hadn't even noticed her fingers entwining with mine. She giggled and then let go of my hand.

"I'm going to go now" She mumbled and with that she was gone.