Special Super-Duper Thank you the my AMAZINGERESTESTERESTEREST beta EvilBunny101!!!!!!!!!!!! (hehe, I have no idea how many –ers and –ests I put before so I figured that should suffice!)
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Scott slammed his fist down on Jack's door, calling out his name but to no avail. He groaned slightly and stood on his tiptoes, reaching for the top of the doors molding.
"Fuckin' giant," Scott muttered, finally fingering the key and sliding it off the molding.
Jamming the key into the lock, Scott opened the door calling out Jack's name yet again. He grimaced at the slight odor of beer that escaped from the overflowing trashcan left in the kitchen. Despite the urge to turn around and leave he continued down the hallway, past the living room and towards the bedroom. Even though it was one in the afternoon he knew that was where he'd find Jack.
Swinging the door open, Scott sighed at the sight of Jack lying across his bed, a beer bottle in one hand and his guitar lying next to him, looking at the blank notebook that lay in his lap. On the bedside table sat an ashtray filled to the brim with half-smoked cigarettes and ash. The blinds were shut and only light in the room came from the television at the front of the room.
"Jack, you're pathetic," Scott said, kicking the side of the bed. "Do you really think that moping around, smoking and drinking is really going to bring her back?"
"I never deserved her," Jack mumbled.
"Usually, I would argue with you about that but you are far too drunk and far too right if this is how you're going to act from now on," he replied. He bent over and plucked the beer bottle from Jack's hand. "You're a mess."
"I love her," he said as if he hadn't heard Scott. He sat up slightly and clutched his head tightly in his hands as a wave of pain surged through it. "But I screwed everything up for her. She should have married Gavin. He could've taken care of her. Even if he was a limp dick."
"No resentment at all, eh, buddy?" Scott pulled open the curtains and let the light into the room. Opening the window, a cold October breeze blew into the room. "It smells like the men's bathroom in Spyder in here."
Jack groaned and rolled over so that his back faced the window. He grabbed the blanket and started to pull it over his head, but Scott grabbed the other end and yanked it out of Jack's hands. He threw it onto the floor and walked around to the other side of the bed and grabbed Jack's arm, forcing him to sit up.
"You are in desperate need of a shower and a nice cup of coffee." He pulled Jack up off the bed and dragged him to the bathroom door. "Go become a hygienic again while I make you coffee. Don't come out of that shower until you smell like something that's living again."
"Fuck you man," Jack said, walking into the bathroom.
Slamming the door shut, Jack walked over to the shower and turned the knob as far as he could on the hot side and then walked over to the sink. He placed his hands on the sink and looked up at the reflection in the mirror.
"You are a mess," he said to himself.
Jack groaned and hovered over the sink, staring down at the drain. Closing his eyes, he started to hear the soft sound of Isabelle's voice over the pinging noise of the water hitting the floor of the shower stall. He grinded his teeth together, trying to drown out the noise but it just got louder. He slammed his hands down on the top of the sink and looked over at the shower, as the sound of her singing in the shower grew louder.
"Baby, is that you?" Isabelle asked, halting her singing.
"Yeah, it's me," Jack replied.
"It's late," she said. She popped her head out from behind the shower curtain and smiled at him as he looked at his reflection in the mirror, running his hand through his hair. "You look ragged."
"It was long day."
"No better way to end a long day then a nice, relaxing shower," she replied. Jack looked away from his reflection and over at her. Water dripped down from her hair and rolled on the smooth skin of neck. "Want to join me?"
"I would if I weren't so tired," he replied.
"You're too tired to shower?" she questioned.
"Yeah." Jack turned back towards the mirror, wiping it clear of the steam. "I was really busy all day recording and meeting with the producers and different people. I barely had time to sit down for a moment."
"I noticed," she said sadly, slipping back behind the curtain and into the flow of water. "You didn't call today."
"Yeah, sorry about that."
"I miss you, Jack," Isabelle whispered, her voice hidden beneath the sound of the water crashing against the porcelain tub.
"What was that?" Jack asked, turning back towards the shower. He could make out the silhouette of Isabelle's body through the light colored curtain and saw that she was just standing there, her head facing down, staring at the bottom of the bathtub.
"Nothing, baby," she replied, loud enough for him to hear.
Jack kept his eyes on her silhouette and watched as she brought a hand up to her head, running it over her wet hair. She took a step closer to the stream and started to sing again, loud enough for him to hear over the running water.
"Selfishly/ Independently/ Knowingly naïve/ Will you brush my hair at bed time/ And bear my soul in your trust/ Better to have loved and to have lost/ It said. I'm not changing/ We've given up, strangers/ I'm not alone as you are/ Free to hide/ I'm sick of the pain as/ We're over and dated/ Too many simple pleasures left far behind…"
"I'm going to bed, babe," Jack said, not wanting to listen to the obvious lyrics anymore.
"Okay."
"Coming soon?"
"Doubt it," she replied, shaking her head. She placed her hand on the tap and turned it to the left so that the water got hotter. "I'll probably go watch a movie in the living room since I'm not tired. Don't want to disturb you."
"Okay," he said with a small nod.
Jack muttered angrily under his breath and looked away from the shower. He gripped tightly onto the edge of the sink as the mist filled the bathroom. Quickly, he disrobed and jumped into the shower, knowing that the sooner he appeased Scott, the sooner he would be left alone.
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"I smell half-alive again," Jack announced, walking into the living room. "You can leave."
"Actually, I can't," Scott replied, dropping the remote onto the couch.
"Why not?"
"Because we need to talk."
Jack laughed harshly and walked into the kitchen. Scott walked over to the coffee pot and grabbed a mug off the counter, pouring the steaming liquid into it. He held it out to Jack, but he ignored it, turning towards the fridge and rummaging around in it until he retrieved a beer.
"What do we need to talk about?"
"You."
"Me?" he questioned. He shook his head and leaned against the counter. "I'm not in the mood for a heart to heart right now, Scotty."
"Bill wants to stage an intervention," Scott blurted out.
Jack dropped his can onto the counter and looked over at his band mate with a bemused look on his face. Scott adverted his eyes.
"Why the fuck is that?"
"Because that's his reaction to your latest set of behaviors," he replied.
Rolling his eyes, Jack pushed past Scott and walked into the living room. He plopped down onto the couch and sunk back into it, staring at the television playing the latest trashy talk show. He brought the beer can up to his lips as Scott walked into the living room, sitting down across from him, blocking Jack's vision of the screen.
"Come on, man," Jack said with a groan.
"Jack, this is serious. You haven't been the same."
"Doesn't explain the intervention," Jack said. He grabbed the pack of cigarettes off the table and pulled one out, lit it and turned back to his friend. "What's really going on here?"
"Bill thinks you're doing coke," Scott admitted.
"Really?" Jack asked with a forced, hoarse laugh.
"Yeah, man."
Jack laughed hoarsely again with a small shake of his head and took a drag on his cigarette. Scott shoved his hands deep into his pockets and looked away from his friend and down the hallway like he wanted to escape. With a small sigh, he turned back to Jack who had closed his eyes and was humming to himself, his attempt to give Scott the hint that he should leave.
"But you're not doing coke…I mean, you're not, right?"
"Are you fuckin' serious?" Jack questioned, opening his eyes.
"Well, dude, you lost a lot of weight in like a month and unless we have practice or a gig you stay locked up in your apartment most of the time. We're worried about you."
"I'm not doing coke, or meth, or anything."
"You are drinking."
"I'm of age."
"You know what I mean," he replied.
"Not everyone is straight edge like you Scotty," Jack said.
"Bill wants to stop by later, I told him I'd get you coherent for him," Scott replied, losing his patience. "As far as I am concerned, I did my job."
Scott stood up and walked over to the door. He placed his hand on the doorknob and waited for a moment. He turned back to Jack and frowned at his friend.
"Don't do this and act like it all has to do with Isabelle finally getting enough sense to leave your dumb ass," Scott said. He walked over to Jack and stood in front of him, ignoring the look of anger on Jack's face that he had broken the unspoken rule and referred to her as Isabelle instead of the pronoun he had reduced her to. "She was smart."
"Shut the fuck up."
"You left her long before she left you! You never came home to her, how the hell do you think she felt?"
"I never cheated on her and you know that."
"I know you didn't, she knew that you didn't. Doesn't change anything." He took a step back and shook his head. "She believed in you, even after you basically gave up on the two of you. It wasn't until about three months before she left that she finally realized that you didn't give a shit about anything but the fucking contract. It killed her to finally admit that she didn't matter anymore."
"You don't know shit about she felt, so don't try to guilt trip me into-"
"You're so self-centered and blind that you couldn't see how miserable she was with you."
"How the hell would you know that?" Jack question, standing up and pushing Scott backwards.
"Unlike you, I talked to her!" He answered, angrily. "You weren't there for her."
"So you were?" he asked, his question insinuating much more than he was saying.
"Don't you dare make it into something it's not, Jack. She was lonely, she needed someone to talk to, nothing else ever happened. She was too in love with you to do anything like that and even an ignorant asshole like you could see that."
"Get the fuck out of my house."
"Gladly."
As Jack plopped back down onto the couch he heard Scott slam the door shut behind him. He grabbed the remote next to him and shut the television off the fighting on the screen making him angrier. Staring at the empty white wall in front of him, he sighed and dug into his pocket, reaching for his cell phone. He took it out and instinctively pressed the first number that came to mind.
Closing his eyes, Jack listened to the ring on the other end. By the fifth ring the familiar, gruff voice answered. He didn't say anything until Bobby repeated his greeting again, his voice tinged with a slight annoyance. Jack took a deep breath and sat forward.
"How's she doing?"
"'Bout fuckin' time," Bobby replied.
"I know, I'm an asshole, I've heard that enough today. Just tell me how she's doing," Jack said, sliding his hand through his hair.
"She ain't doin' great, but she ain't cryin' over you anymore."
"Is she there?"
"No, she had to go with Lyn to the doctor's."
"Is she okay?"
"Just the flu or somethin'. You should call back when she's home. You should talk to her."
"Maybe…Probably not." A loud knock sounded out through Jack's apartment and he looked over at the door just as it opened up, revealing Bill, Scott, Vaughn and Ray. "Look, Bobby, I gotta go. Don't tell her I called."
Jack hung up the phone and slid it back into his pocket. He stood up and turned toward his manager and band members.
"We need to talk," Bill said.
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Thank You:
4everdreaming (LMAO, I love the overreactions that I make Bobby have, they're fun to write…Expect more, of course, but also you might see a side of Bobby people don't usually expect to see in the new chapter lol)
Dark-Celeste (Friday Night Lights is on tonight! So far I am remembering to watch it lol)
EvilBunny101 (haha, I know I usually take forever to update but this one was rather early, don't you think? Lol)
Iris Knotwise
JustAnotherFallen (Haha, I already know what they're kid is gonna look like! How sad is that? )
Ollie-oxycotyn (Yay, you're hooked! Speaking of hooked, you must must must update your Billy Darly story soon, it's sooooo amazing!)
Smiju (Thank you for your review on chapter 6!!!)
