Joanna

"You broke up with him? Why the hell would you do that to him? What did he do?" I asked Shanna, eating another chip.

"He was a douche, so what?" Shanna replied, shrugging and popping a few more M&M's in her mouth.

"So what? You hurt someone, Shanna. Adam came over to see Jackson crying. Crying!" I told her, totally pissed off now.

My friends could care less about other people's feelings. Ronnie and Kat laughed at something Mary said, and I rolled my eyes. Tori threw a cheese ball and hit Kat in the eye. Ronnie's two cousins, Shannon and her little sister, Cassie, came to visit and they sat there, shooting comments back and forth at each other about my crazy-ass friends.

"Well, I'm sorry, but he told me that he was gay and that he still wanted to be friends. So, I just up and dumped him. He doesn't want me, so I don't want him," Shanna quipped.

I suppressed a growl and asked her, "So, do you feel that way about Xavier and Sam? They're gay. If they didn't want to hang out with you, would you just dump them as friends?"

She made a face at me and I sighed. My cell phone buzzed and I looked at the text. It was from Jackson.

Can you come home? Xavier and Sam came over. They and Adam are sleeping over.

I sent him one back.

I can't stand Shanna anymore. Tell Adam I love him and that everything will be okay. If Zay and Sam pull the whiney thing, tell 'em I love them too. :) Love you the most! Be home in a min.

I told my friends that something had come up at home and that I had to leave. I jogged up to the house and unlocked the door. Everyone was hunting, leaving Jackson and I home alone.

"Hi, Joanna," Adam sniffled when I walked in.

He sat on the couch in between Xavier and Sam. I noticed his normally black hair was turning red (his normal hair color).

"Hey, beautiful," Jackson greeted me, kissing me.

"Hey, babe," I murmured, and then moved over to the couch where my best friends were sitting. I leaned down and kissed Adam's cheek. "How are you, sweetie?"

"I'm doing better. Thanks," he mumbled.

I smoothed his hair back, ruffling his bangs. "I like your hair red. It's adorable."

He smiled briefly. I bent over the back of the couch again and kissed Sam's cheek, then moved over to kiss Xavier's.

"No that everyone has gotten their kisses, are we gonna have a party or what?" I asked playfully, grinning.

Adam laughed miserably, but smiled back at me anyway. "Of course. That's why we're here."

I giggled which in turn caused everyone to laugh with me. Jackson got the snacks for us and I got movies. We stayed away from any romance movies.

"Oooo! Oh, wait. Nevermind," I said, putting Milk back on our DVD shelf.

"What? I don't want to keep you guys from watching a movie you like," Adam said, wiping at his nose with a tissue.

"No. I can always make Jay watch it with me some other time. It's fine, Adam," I assured him.

He scowled at me and I smiled.

"Fine," he grumbled.

I persuaded them all to watch an animated movie, and sat on the couch curled up in between Jackson and Adam. As the night continued on, we all ended up spreading blankets on the floor and curling up together. My head ended up pillowed on Jackson's stomach, his hand stroking my hair soothingly, while he was stretched out, his arm curled underneath his head. Adam's head laid on my lower stomach, and I aimlessly played with his hair. Xavier and Sam laid tangled together, somehow laying on me as well. They didn't want to make Jackson uncomfortable since he was surrounded by gay guys. Though I knew even if one of them kissed Jackson he wouldn't have cared.

The last thing I remembered was Jackson sitting up, just to better kiss my forehead and tell me good night.

---

I woke feeling a lot more comfortable than I should have. I realized that I was laying on the couch, a pillow under my head and a blanket draped over me.

"Mornin', little darlin'," Xavier crooned, and I smiled.

"Wow, you sounded country right there. It scared me a little," I teased, rolling onto my back.

He leaned down, pressing his lips to my forehead. "Don't make fun. Just because you grew up in Texas. I'm a Georgia boy. Different state, sugar."

I stuck my tongue out at him, and he laughed. Jackson came in then, smiling at me.

"Are we discussing different states? Morning, baby doll," he said, and leaned down to kiss me. "It's too early for you to be up. Sam and Adam are still asleep. Go back to sleep."

I blinked sleepily up at him. I was really tired.

"Go back to sleep, sweetheart," he repeated.

I nodded, turned back over onto my belly, and fell asleep.

---

"I don't think she feels good. She feels kind of warm."

I curled up against the soft voices of my husband and my friends.

"Just let her sleep. She hasn't been sleeping good lately."

I fell asleep again quickly, unable to stay awake.

---

"Joanna, angel, can you wake up for me for just a minute?" Jackson asked me, rousing me from my sleep.

I sat up, rubbing at my eyes. Jackson reached up and felt my forehead.

"You don't feel too warm," he muttered to himself.

"I'm fine, Jay. I just need to get up and move around. I'm warm 'cause I was sleeping under a blanket and I was all warm and cozy," I told him, and pushed myself up.

Adam, Sam, and Xavier came back into the room, and I found myself wrapped up in Adam's arms. He was 6'1'', but was one of the shortest in our little group of friends. I hugged him back, kissing his cheek, and smiled.

"Morning. Did you sleep good?" I asked him.

"Slept just fine. Your floor is very comfy," he replied, smiling.

I hugged Sam and Xavier, asked them how they slept, and then we ate breakfast.

"Hey, a friend of mine called me yesterday and I invited them to come see me. Can I tell them to come here and meet all of you?" Adam asked.

"Sure. That's fine. We have this huge-ass house, so why not?" I joked.

Jackson laughed and kissed my head. "True that, babe."

I smiled and kissed his gently. "If you guys want to take a shower or whatever, you can take one in the bathroom upstairs. There's towels in the closet right next to the bathroom."

Adam took advantage of this offer first, and came back a little bit more redheaded. He laughed and raked his hand through his hair when I pointed this out.

"My friend that's coming over is even more redheaded than I am. My hair is like legitimately red. His is orange. Like, fo-sho orange," Adam teased.

"Don't make fun of him when he's not even here to fight back. That's just mean," I said, giggling despite myself.

Adam laughed, throwing his head back and nudging my arm.

The doorbell rang a few minutes after that and I got up to get it. The boy–well, I really should say man–that stood behind the door was at least as tall as Xavier's older brother, Danny, or Jacob. He had curly, ginger-colored hair and a big smile.

I smiled back, and said, "Hi there. I'm Joanna."

"I'm Dainan," he drawled, his voice thick with an Australian accent.

"Well, Dainan, come on in. Adam's in the kitchen," I told him, letting him in.

He stepped into the house, and made his way into the kitchen. I followed after him and Jackson immediately came to my side when I stepped into the room. For some reason, I felt as if I'd missed him. I stood up on my toes and wrapped my arms around his neck, kissing him. He smiled and chuckled against my lips, wrapping his arms around my waist.

"You two are the most adorable couple I've ever seen," Dainan told us, grinning.

I smiled, blushing, and pressed closer to Jackson's side. "Thanks."

"I'm serious. It's as if you were made for each other," he said.

Jackson and I smiled at each other. We were practically made for each other. Jasper and Alice were made for each other, so it only makes sense that we were too.

"They're married too," Adam said, and smiled at me.

I smiled back at him and blushed a little.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Apparently Ronnie's cousin Cassie slapped Shanna with a piece of pizza," I mumbled after checking my phone for messages.

Jackson laid next to me, his arm being my pillow as I curled up against his side. My thigh was draped over his equally naked one and we were still trying to calm our breathing. We'd just done some...questionable activities and we were exhausted.

"Serves her right for dumping Adam, but that is the weirdest sentence I think I've ever heard," Jackson said, pushing a few stray curls of hair off his forehead.

I pushed myself up and swung my feet over the edge of the bed. Jackson reached for me and I brushed my fingers over his forearm.

"I'll be right back, Jay," I told him, and he smiled a little at me.

I slipped off the bed and padded to the bathroom that was attached to our room. I stood in front of the sink, staring at myself in the mirror, and sighed. How could I be so messed up inside but still look so perfect on the outside? I guess I'd never know. I went back out into the room and found Jackson standing instead of in his previous spot on the bed. He stood in front of the full length mirror and I watched him for a moment. He studied himself in the mirror and I realized he was holding his breath.

"Breathe, sweetie," I murmured and his head snapped around to look at me, the air whooshing out of his lungs like I'd punched him in the stomach, and his cheeks flamed a bright scarlet.

He quickly looked down and away from me, his blush creeping down onto his neck. I moved closer and he wouldn't meet my eyes.

"Jay, what's wrong? Why are you so self-conscious all of the sudden?" I asked, touching his arm.

"I've always been self-conscious, Jo. Just never around you. I don't know why I've gotten like this so suddenly," he muttered, raking a hand through his curls.

When his arm lifted to push his hand through his hair, I watched the muscles in his side ripple. I laid my hand on his waist and he relaxed. I took his other hand and tugged him back over to the bed.

"Come on, baby. Let's lay back down," I proposed, and he finally smiled, lifting me up onto the bed.

We crawled under the sheets and I laid my head on Jackson's chest as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders. His fingertips brushed over my side and it was hard enough not to tickle but to lull me to sleep. The last thing I remembered was him kissing the top of my head and murmuring, "I love you."

---

Jasper

"Can you touch your toes?" Joanna asked Jackson out of no where, her legs curled against her chest while they sat on the couch together.

"Um... I guess," Jackson said, unsure.

He stood up and leaned down, his fingertips touching the floor past his feet.

Joanna snarled. "I've never been able to touch my toes!"

She stood up as well and reached towards the floor. I felt the jolt of pain just as she gasped and shot up into a standing position. She grabbed the back of her thigh and Jackson didn't know what to do to help her. She groaned and panted heavily.

"Jo, baby, what's wrong?" He asked her, touching her back tentatively.

"Charlie horse. I'm okay, Jay," she choked out, still holding her thigh tightly. "Guess I still can't touch my toes!"

Jackson had to laugh and she giggled along with him. She finally got the Charlie horse to go away, and sat back down. Jackson pulled her onto his lap and she happily curled up against him.

The doorbell rang and I moved from my spot in the doorway to the kitchen. I stroked Jackson's hair as I passed. I gave him these small affectionate touches hoping to gain his trust as Alice did with Joanna.

Joanna and Jackson's friends, Magnus, Adam, Travis, and Ian, stood on the porch. I smiled and let them in. Joanna was the first to clamor off the couch and throw herself in her friends' arms.

"How have you been, darling?" Magnus asked her, smiling, and curled a finger under her chin.

She grinned, and said, "Good. Not much has happened since we got back."

He smiled wider and I glanced at Adam quickly. He seemed to look through Joanna's facade of being a college age kid. He appeared to know that she was younger than she said and that she had several secrets hidden behind her near perfect act.

Travis and Ian, I was happy to see, adored Joanna. They liked having a friend that was a girl that they could look after. They were twin boys so they didn't really have to look out for the other.

Joanna wrapped her arms around Adam's neck, standing up on her toes to kiss his cheek. "How are you doing?"

"Better. A lot better. Magnus... can I...?" Adam trailed off.

"Of course," Magnus answered, smiling.

"Magnus broke up with his boyfriend while you guys were gone and he's..."

"Mag! You broke up with Lucas and didn't tell us?" Joanna cried, scowling at her much taller friend.

He smiled and shrugged. "Sorry, sweetheart."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "You'll pay for that eventually."

"He's what, sweetie?" Joanna prompted Adam to continue his sentence.

"Asked me to go out on a date with him," Adam finished, blushing and looking down, his voice dropping low.

Joanna squealed. "That's so great! I'm so glad you're able to move on after all of that."

Magnus grinned as Adam blushed harder from Joanna's attention. I could see the love he felt for Adam in the way his green/brown eyes gleamed and I felt it radiating off him. I smiled, leaning against the doorway to the kitchen once again.

Wow. THAT took a long time to write. School's been kicking my butt lately and I was sick for the last week of October and the first week of November. And now I'm on my way to see my extended family down in GA and TN. It's been a crazy month!

Anyhoo! I hope you liked it. Drop me a review and tell me what you thought. :)

Peace,

CFD