All These Things We Feel

Prologue

Disclaimer : I really promise that I do not own the characters in this story. Although I would very much like to own Freddy and/or Zack, but then again, everyone says that too.

Summary : Summer has got her life sorted. High School is over and four best friends need to split ways. But just when she thinks she's alright, Freddy Jones comes crawling back into her life and previous crushes return.

So, anyway on with the story...

Summer

I clicked my tongue loudly as I strolled leisurely down the half-busy hallway, slipping my locker key out the front pocket of my plaid shirt before hastily shoving it into the lock, and giving it a good old twist. As usual, it failed to open properly and I was quick to irritate. I sighed, feeling defeated and punched the locker door causing it to swing wide open, revealing my tidy schoolbooks to the entire world – oh well.

"Where the heck is that thing?" I murmured, shifting through my belongings carefully, looking for something amongst the orderly rubble. In the heat of the late summer afternoon, a pulled at my collar and took the navy bag off my shoulders, dropping it beside my feet – I exhaled when I felt the weight confiscate and almost immediately, I returned to searching. Before long, I saw something at the back of the small metal cabinet and I knew I had found it.

With great relief, I pulled out a colourful scrapbook from out of the locker and held it with both strong hands, stroking its cover before blowing the dust off – or the lack of it. I smiled, slamming the locker door shut again, then retrieving my bag from the floor, and swinging it over my shoulder. I hugged the large book to my chest and ran down the hallway, out into the field eagerly in the hopes of finding the group.

I would have said my best friends, because frankly, Zack and Katie are both my best friends. Somebody else, however has a reputation for hanging around with us, therefore it's "the group" because the uncanny Freddy Jones is there. I have never been too fond of him.

Well, actually that's a lie, because I am too fond of him. In fact, I have crushed on him since the fifth grade. Except, there's a slight catch, because Freddy is head over heels with Katie, and it sucks. I hate everything about him; his arrogance, his personality and basically, everything about him – but I still have something brewing for the guy, and I really can't get rid of it. So, hiding it is the next best thing. It's going pretty good so far.

"Summer!" Zack yelled, waving from the distance and beaming at me, he shifted in his grassy seat.

"Hey Zack!" I replied, waving back before hurriedly making my way towards him. As usual, after school before band practice the four of us would meet in the field – just to, well, hang out. To be honest it was great fun, just talking, which is the mean reason that the three of us are so close. As much as I detest it, Zack and Katie consider Freddy their best friend too – I don't know him well enough to call him that.

"Hey! How about that, Sum, you're late!" Zack said as I plopped myself down on the moist grass beside him, without delay my eyes snapped over to Katie. She waved and smiled, and in contrast to her sarcastic, shady behaviour, she bared a sweet smile. Freddy on the other hand, fully ignored my presence and carried on gaping at Katie.

"I know! I was just getting this out of my locker, plus I had to stick around to finish my history project." I shrugged, and then I outstretched my arm so that the both of them could see the scrapbook. Their faces light up when they saw it and Katie took it from me, placing it on her lap.

"Wow! Sum, this looks amazing!" Katie said, her finger tracing the brightly coloured writing on the cover, which clearly said 'The Memories Of The School Of Rock!'

"Yeah Tink!" Freddy cheered, finally joining us and peering at the book from over Katie's shoulder, "You actually did something cool!" With a slight pang of annoyance of him hovering there, Katie nudged her shoulder upwards so that it smacked him right in the chin. She grinned when Freddy moaned in pain, clutching onto his face.

I eyed Freddy from the corner of my eye and a frown played onto my lips when I saw him upset. I jumped in a feeling of shock, when I suddenly felt a comforting hand on my shoulder, and turned just in time to see Zack smiling at me, sitting closer than he was previously before.

"Don't mind him, he's an ass." He said and patting my back gently, "What's it for?" He continued, pointing a finger at the book, Katie and Freddy were now flicking and scanning through with utmost delicacy. They grinned every now and again when they saw funny photos of the group.

"Well, we're all going our separate ways now. Graduation is in a few days and most of us are going to different schools," I told him, motioning that it was just a dumb book and waving it off– inwards I felt unlike, "I mean the three of you are going to music school and I'm going in a totally opposite direction. So it's for you to take care of now." I gave Zack a smile and he returned it, wrapping an arm around me and pulling me into a one armed hug. I blushed and looked away.

It finally sunk in and my heart stung. Graduation was real soon, and after that, it's unlikely I'll be able to see these guys again. True friends can keep in touch – I'll make sure of it. By whatever means I can.

As I said before, the three of them are leaving for Stanford's University Of Music, and they all worked really hard to get in. After applications, auditions and interviews, the three of them have been so tried out. So now that they've been accepted, the three of them are so excited to get started. They're disappearing soon after graduation too.

Laurence, the band's keyboard player, is then going to London to attend The Royal College Of Music in Kensington. Fancy, I know. He's much older now and has decided to return to the classical side of music, and as expected, his parents both fully agree. They support him all the way - we all do.

Billy's going right to fashion school, obviously. Yeah, it's made right for him – destiny, or whatever he says it is. He'll by at home there and I suppose he'll do great. I wouldn't be surprised if I saw his designs up in the fashion light real soon, I mean really, he's changed a lot since those tacky wardrobe costumes in elementary. Now he makes awesome clothes and sometimes, he gives me a few. I love that queer.

Who else? Well Tomika, Marta and Alicia are all off somewhere to do God knows what. I don't really know, but they did mention something of trying out for shows, so good for them. The rest of the guys didn't say, so I assume their doing something that they love too. Especially Gordon and his computer skills, I guess he'll be the next Bill Gates or something. He's a whiz!

I'll miss them all - even those who teased me a lot. That means, Frankie too.

About me, I'm just going to do Business Management in a school pretty far away from here. I believe that it's the best thing to go for, and years of being the band's manager kind of got me ready for that. It's what I'm good at, so I'm giving that a try.

Therefore, it's goodbye to Horace Green High School and Hello to University. Hello to the world outside the teenage mind and I presume that means, goodbye to Freddy Jones too. He won't miss me. I know he won't.

"Hey! Look at that picture of the four of us!" Katie yelled, poking the plastic of the photo, glued into the last page of the book. I snapped out of my daze and peered over them to see. Sure enough, there the photo was – my favourite of the bunch.

All four of us are at band practice and I presume from the looks of it, it's just finished. We all have our arms around each other, and from the right to the left, its Katie, Freddy, then me and Zack. That's probably the closest Freddy and I have ever been, he's actually got his arm around my shoulders, along with Zack too. But still everyone's laughing and looking at one another, we look like we're having fun – Dewey is even in the back playing air guitar.

"Look at the old man playing guitar at back!" Freddy shouted, laughing and showing everybody Dewey in the photo. We all joined in the mindless giggling.

We sighed after a while, as Zack laid down on the grass, giving himself some leverage with his arms and patting down his crisp white school shirt, "I'm really going to miss this." He whispered to himself, but we all heard and nodded in agree.

Katie laid down beside him and they stared at the sky. Watching the clouds as they passed by without a care in the world. Instantly, it took the weight off our shoulders.

Freddy picked up the scrapbook and stared at the cover in awe before smiling to himself. He reached out for his school bag, covered in various rock band badges, and pulled it onto his lap. Slowly, he put the scrapbook in his bag and hugged it to his chest, cherishing the memories.

"McGee, what the heck are you doing?" Zack asked, titling his head to look at him.

Straight away, Freddy looked at me and for a second our eyes met, "I think I want to take this home the most." He said and Zack nodded, going back into conversation with Katie.

I looked away from him but was drawn back when he spoke to me, "Um, Tink I promise to take care of it. Thanks for making something so awesome." He mumbled so only I could hear and I understood it was a compliment from him - the first. For once he sounded sincere and true. My cheeks flushed a deep shade of pink, I felt it.

It was the first time he actually said something like that to me, something nice.

I smiled at him before throwing my gaze onto the floor, just so I didn't see him smiling back.