When you got home, the first thing you did was hug Schilling and Geiger. "I missed you guys!" you said as you pulled schilling to the side. "It's been a mess since you haven't been here. I had to work a second job to help manage. How do you do it?" You shrugged.
"So what has been going on? Did you and Jade hook up?" You nodded and said, "What has Geiger been doing lately?" She smiled awkwardly and said, "He says that he has a new girlfriend and he told me to tell you that he feels bad for trying it with you because he knew you two were only friends and he knew you liked Jade."
You sighed. "Well now Jade is leaving for a year for touring and TV interviews. I don't know what I'm going to do but I know I have to occupy myself to keep him out of my mind. He's going to spend the last few days with me but I don't even know if I want to now because I know when I see him, I'll just get sad again."
"I'm sorry. But I'll do something so you two can spend the last days well."
You smiled and turned around to see the bus leave. Jade would be over tomorrow bright and early. You sighed and walked inside and looked around. It was messy still. Was it never clean? You walked upstairs and took in the familiar smell of your room. You plopped onto it seeing as you tired from the long drive home.
You stared at the ceiling trying to take in that you were returned to your old routine. You sighed. You didn't want to forget everything that happened. They'd be overrun by all the new memories you'll have over the course of this year. You had to be responsible again after taking the most laidback trip of your life.
You didn't want to think about this anymore. You then fall asleep.
You woke up and heard silence. This was new. It was never quiet in this house.
You got and changed into some casual clothes and went downstairs. You thought it would be nice if you cooked something for Jade when he came over.
You prepared the food and set the timer on the stove.
As you carried out the finishing touches, you heard knocking on your door. You yelled for them to come in. "Hey, what's up? What are you making?" Jade said.
"It's a secret. Here, try it." You put a spoonful of it in his mouth as you mused for his reaction. He smiled and said, "It's very good I love it,"
You smiled. "Hey, this is random I know but it's kind of like a test of skills. Can you dance?" He looked up and said, "What kind of dancing? I can ballroom dance and slow dance and I can sort of tango except it comes out more like 50s dancing." He laughed. You loved it when he laughed.
"Good, you passed my test." You laughed. You sat down with your food and watched a little TV before Jade found something of yours in the couch. "What the hell? What is this for?" he said as he held up a little baggy. "Oh Jade, it's not what you think," you tired to say but were interrupted by him. "You're not into that stuff, are you? The whole drug world? That doesn't seem like you at all," he sighed. You looked at your feet and said, "It's not a side of me I'd ever like to have you ever see. I don't know why but a lot can happen when you're 'in the moment'. It sounds pathetic but even though I try not to act like a kid, I am a kid. I was high when I overdosed and went to the hospital. I'm so shocked they didn't do any drug tests or you would've found out back then. I don't want you to look down on me because of it."
He then said, "I wouldn't look down on you. I'm concerned. I mean, it's scary for me to know this is what you're doing when I'm gone. I'm leaving for year now and when I come back I don't want you to be a drug addict. Now this obviously isn't all your doing. Who put you up to it in the start?"
You smiled awkwardly and said, "Schilling,"
He sighed once again. You didn't want him to feel worried so you said, "Jade when you leave, I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to react like. I would say that everything will be fine but I don't know. But I'll listen to you. I won't smoke any more pot. This is where this becomes a big deal. I don't normally listen to other people because I'm stubborn but for some reason I listen to you. It's like you've been there and know what it's like," you smiled as he grabbed your hand.
"Forget about me when I'm gone. Act as if nothing has happened. Live your life like you did before you ever met me. But this time, I want you to be happy. I want you to go out and find yourself something in life to enjoy. Quit the diner. You have connections now," he said as he slipped a card into your hand. On the card was the name's of several different talent-seeking agents listed in your area. You looked up at Jade and smiled widely. And hugged him for a long time and whispered, "It's not going to be the same without you here to see me rise up. But I'll listen to you. Stay in my dreams and I'll love you forever."
Then you thought of what you said. "I'll love you forever," meant love. Real love? Did you just say you loved him?
He looked down shyly then said, "It doesn't hurt to know I'm leaving for a year. In fact just knowing you said that will make me happy for a long time. I love you now more than I ever did at the beginning."
This shocked you but you felt so happy you jumped up and kissed him hard on the lips. You opened your mouth a bit so he had access. You felt him breathing down your throat as his tongue light grazed against your lips. His taste filled your mouth as you passionately frenched on the sofa. It didn't matter that you were in a messy mobile home; all that mattered was that you were in love and you were happy.
Even if it all washed down on the day he left, you felt him with you always. As months went by, you continued taking his advice through it all.
Randomly in the middle of the year
You scrubbed at the dishes while you watched the news in the other room. Your hair has gotten a lot longer since he left. You noticed lots of news covering the whole Israel and Lebanon stuff. You sighed and questioned the country's authority. You finished your last dish and changed the channel to MTV. You noticed TRL was on. You also noticed 'miss murder' was playing. You smiled and looked down as you turned the TV off as you grabbed your keys and walked out to your car. You had a meeting with an agent to go to and you were a little off track.
You drove cautiously as you pulled into the parking lot of a large record company building. You were heading towards the front door when a flashy looking guy opened the door for you. You were surprised that a man of his status would even give you a second look but you said, "thank you" and kept walking. You heard "A little less sixteen candles a little more touch me" by fall out boy playing lightly in the background as you walked up to the front desk and said, "I have an appointment with Martin Svennings."
The secretary nodded her head towards the left and pointed out the office in between typing.
You walked over down the hall and noticed a girl punching the wall. "That fucking asshole! He didn't even have to hear me sing to tell me if I'm cut out for the industry," she yelled to herself.
You walked up and said, "Sorry to listen in, but what happened? I'm supposed to go in next,"
She smirked and said, "Good luck. He's a fascist prick. By the way, my name is Lauren. Nice to meet you."
You smiled and said, "The name is Jess. So why exactly did he turn you down?"
She frowned and said, "Because I'm not 'star material'. He wouldn't even listen to me sing. It's kind of a letdown after the 5th time of rejection this week."
"Ouch, this is my third appointment so I'm hoping my enthusiasm isn't scarred after this," you say.
"Well good luck, really. I'll be waiting out here to see how you do."
You sighed and walked into the room. There was a man with dark black hair. It was combed in somewhat of an emo combover. It looked like the lead singer of 30 seconds to mars' hair. He had dark eyes. His business suit threw off his image.
"Um hi, Mr. Svennings?" you asked somewhat confidently.
"Call me Marten."
"Marten! Nice to meet you, my name is Jesse Hansen," you said nervously as you set your purse down as you walked in.
"Turn around." He directed as you did so without a word.
"You look like Hayley Williams from Paramore," he said blankly. You swallowed and asked, "Why did you say no to Lauren? She seems like someone who deserve this,"
You made a nod upwards and said, "She may deserve it but approaching with a scared look in your eye proves that there is no place for you in an industry as hard-headed as this. I am considered to be different than other agents and this is something I take deep pride in. I cannot accept everyone into here, even if they are talented."
You nodded sadly as you understood. He stood up with a remote control in his hand as he pointed it at a stereo placed on a shelf. "Can you dance and sing at the same time?" he asked. You said, "Well, I can but that's not really what I'm looking for. I want to be a singer in a band like Paramore."
He smirked and clicked a button and said, "Sing along to this seeing as you obviously know who the band is. Then I will give you the opportunity to show me your own song. Simply I just want to see how you'd act if you were on stage. Here's a microphone. Just pretend. It's unprofessional but it's easily established." "
Then suddenly, the sound of "Never let this go" filled the room. You grabbed the mic and shut your eyes. This was getting easier to do after all that practice. You curved your lips and sang, "Maybe if my heart stops beating, It won't hurt this much
And never will I have to answer
Again to anyone
Please don't get me wrong
Because I'll never let this go
But I can't find the words to tell you
I don't want to be alone
But now I feel like I don't know you
One day you'll get sick of
saying that everything's alright
And by then I'm sure I'll be pretending
Just like I am tonight
Please don't get me wrong
Because I'll never let this go
But I can't find the words to tell you
I don't want to be alone
But now I feel like I don't know you
Let this go, let this go
But I'll never let this go
But I can't find the words to tell you
I don't want to be alone
But now I feel like I don't know you
I'll never let this go
I can't find the words to tell you
That now I feel like I don't know you," you held the note and ended it.
He smiled and said, "I think you have a pretty good chance of making it. So far, I like your style. You're not really extreme but your not just another avril lavigne. You have something about you that makes you more down to earth."
You smiled and grabbed your song sheet.
"Alright, so I want you play your song with no music. Just sing like your home by yourself or something."
You sighed and looked down at the words you wrote down.
You breathed in and sang, "If you knew what it was like, being one beneath the earth
Would you see that I am miserable just moving on with life?
These are things that need to change
these are my words written down, on the pages of my mind
These are my memories that, I thought I'd never find,
And it just hurts when you say, that you could feel my aches, you never can feel my aches
If I told you what had happened when I fell down out of mind,
I just know that I would hurt again with lost fears and a knife,
These are things that need to change
These are my words written down, on the pages of my mind
These are my memories that, I thought I'd never find, never find
And it just hurts when you say, that you could feel my aches, you never can feel my aches
You are the one I want to keep so why do you keep taunting me
You're in my dreams
It's not what it seems
I'm painfully constant to you
These are things that need to change
these are my words written down, on the pages of my mind
These are my memories that, I thought I'd never find, never find
And it just hurts when you say, that you could feel my aches, you never can feel my aches"
"Very nicely put. We could work on some of those lyrics but all in all. I'm impressed. You can get started in a few weeks. We need to get you a band and maybe some gigs in the future but I'm not promising anything. Do you know anyone who might be talented enough to join your band?"
You thought about it. "Yes, I know that girl Lauren seems like she'd be good for it."
He sighed and said, "Do we really want to have her? I know I haven't heard her sing or do anything but she just seems so,"
"Never judge a book by its cover. You may be overlooking some good talent."
He smiled and said, "That is very true. Now just go tell your friend about it and I'll take care of the rest. I will make this as easy as I can for you. I'll call you in a few weeks when we need to set up the rehearsals/gigs."
You nodded and walked out and told Lauren all about what happened. "Wow, he said that? Maybe he's not a fascist prick after all," she laughed.
"So how old are you? How long have you been interested in starting a band?"
She tucked her long black hair behind her ear and said, "I'm 22 and I've been trying to start a band since I was 17. I guess you can say I'm a bit of a wannabe but I want to do this. I don't know what else I have in life. Plus I really would like to meet Adam Lazzara someday. I love him so much! If I don't meet him, I'll die unsatisfied!"
You laughed at her devotion. It was sweet.
"I'm probably going to have to draw some graphics for my album. I'm thinking of calling it Ridged Catastrophe. But I need to rite some more songs but I'm not good at songs and I need help. Do you think you can come over one day and help me?"
"Of course. I would love to. I'd never skip out on an opportunity," she said.
"Good, we can chill at my place anytime you'd like. You can meet my roommates."
"Sweet."
As you drove home, you thought about your day. You had gotten a talent agreement put together and you were on your way to getting a band together all in the course of a few weeks. You felt pleased to be able to go home to an empty house since Geiger and Schilling were visiting their families. You had all made an agreement that once every few months you would all visit your families. Of course, you couldn't visit your family seeing as your parents were dead and you didn't want to visit your foster family because they lived really far from California. You just didn't have the money to go out of state. So you agreed you'd stay here and maintain.
You plopped down on the couch and turned on the TV. You turned it Fuse and saw AFI sitting on the couch while Jade talked about the new album.
Then Steven asked, "Do you get homesick a lot when you're on tour?"
Jade then said, "You don't know the half of it. It is so hard to stay in touch with our family and friends and it really interferes with our moods during touring but we manage to stay upbeat and we still enjoy seeing the fans."
Then Davey started talking about how he missed his dog. Ha.
Then Marianela mentioned about a contest where you had the chance to play opening band for AFI. And you could also win a signed les paul guitar and amp. You sighed but smiled as you turned off the TV and went upstairs. You started digging around in Geiger's room. You didn't know what you were looking for until you found it. A pack of cigarettes.
'But I don't smoke,' you thought. 'Is this supposed to be some substitute for coping?'
You sighed and grabbed your lighter. You pulled out a joint and lit it and raised it to your lips. You sucked in and exhaled. You felt relaxed. You put the pack in your pocket as you grabbed your keys and walked out to the car. You needed some air and the park seemed like the greatest solution.
When you got there you locked your car and walked to a nearby bench. AS you finished your cigarette, you reached for the pack to grab another. You lifted it up to light it but a voice startled you.
"You shouldn't smoke those," you looked up to see a young boy who looked oddly like Jade. But something was different about him. He was very thin and had light jade eyes.
"You're very pretty. Pretty girls shouldn't smoke. It's obvious that you got a lot on your mind. What happened?" He said as he sat next to you. You sighed and said, "My boyfriend left for a year and I'm really having a hard time dealing with it still. Today I watched him do an interview on TV and now I feel sad."
He smiled sympathetically in a way that made you feel content.
"Oh, is he famous?" he asked smiling widely.
"Eh, sort of. I mean, I guess he's pretty famous being in AFI and all," you were interrupted by, "What? You're the chick that sung with AFI at warped! I knew I recognized you from somewhere. Is your boyfriend Jade?"
You nodded and asked, "How did you know?"
He eerily smiled and said, "I saw you two all over each other at the food place. It's actually kind of cute really. I haven't had a girlfriend in a while," he paused and sighed. You smiled and said, "It's okay, I understand. Really I do because I've been without my boyfriend for about 6 months now and I still have like 6 left. I wish I just could hug him again. You look like him and I'm resisting my urges."
He laughed and scooted closer and said, "I'll satisfy you for now," before embracing you in friendly manner. You smiled and said, "Thanks. By the way, my name is Jesse."
"My name is Caleb. Nice to officially meet you."
You giggled. He was so cute and nice. Must. Resist. Urges.
"I can't remember what it felt like to kiss Jade! My mouth is untouched and unloved! I don't know how I'm going to survive 6 more months!" You whined. You started to cry a little.
Caleb grabbed the cigarette you failed to light and lit it and stuck it in your mouth. You inhaled and suddenly felt relaxed again.
"Maybe it's better if you smoke. Then you're not as much as a wreck."
You smiled and said, "I'm not usually this bad. This is the first time I've really taken it in since he left. But now I feel a little better knowing that you were here instead of just me by myself. Um, don't take this wrong but would you like to come back home with me? My roommates are out of town and I don't want to go home by myself,"
"Oh, sure! That's cool; I understand what that's like. So how old are you?"
You bit your lip and said, "I'm 21."
He gulped and smiled and said, "Wow, I thought you'd be like 17 or something. You're older than you look. I'm 20."
You sighed and said, "I hate looking younger than I am. I'm short on top of that!"
You then asked him, "Do you live around here?"
He nodded his head and said, "I live by myself in those apartment buildings over there." He pointed towards some normal looking apartments across the street.
"Oh, that's cool. So shall we go then? It's getting pretty dark and roads get pretty crappy at night,"
He nodded and you both headed towards your car. As you got in the car, you said, "So, do you usually give advice to complete strangers?"
He laughed and shook his head. "No, I'm really shy so I don't really meet new people easily. I just kind of winged something at you. Whatever comes to my mind. That's why I don't have a girlfriend. I don't like to approach people if I have nothing to say."
You smiled as you started the car up and headed home.
"So what do you do?" he asked. You sighed and said, "I am getting a band together with my agent's help and we're going to try to get signed."
He grinned at this and said, "Really? I play bass and I can sing too!"
You then had an idea. "I know! I can get a few of my friends up here and maybe they can join the band!"
He beamed at this and yelled, "You mean you'll let me join?"
You nodded as he jumped up and down.
You laughed and said, "Hyper much?"
He nodded enthusiastically. You giggled at his frenzy. "Hey, I know this is weird again for just meeting you and all but would you want to stay over tonight? I can invite my friend Lauren over too so it wouldn't be just us." He agreed.
Honestly you were afraid for it to be just you and him. He was so nice and you were starting to grow fond of him and that CANNOT happen.
You called Lauren and she arrived 30 minutes later wearing a striped zip up hoodie and tight blue jeans. "Hey Lauren, looking good. Whom are you trying to impress?" you joked as she walked inside. "Oh, you know who. There's your hippy lampshade, your video camera, your," she paused as she saw who you had over.
You intervened into the staring contest and said, "Hey Caleb, We're going to go upstairs to get a movie to watch. We'll be right back." You grabbed Lauren and went upstairs.
When you reached the top of the stairs, she screamed out, "You didn't tell me you had a guest! My god, I've never seen anyone look that good in a long time! So his name is Caleb?"
You nodded and she said, "Did you call dibs? I call dibs!" You nervously smiled and looked at the floor and said, "I already have a boyfriend...who looks just like that,"
"Really who?"
"Jade Puget."
Her jaw dropped and she yelled, "Are you serious?"
You nodded and said, "He's been away for 6 months and now this guy comes along who looks just like him."
"Wow, this must be killing you."
You nodded and held up a cigarette pack. Lauren smiled as you both went to look for a movie to watch.
You grabbed Moulin Rouge and ran downstairs.
Later
"No! Why'd she have to die! That's not fair!" Emily screamed as you all watched the ending. You sniffed and wiped the tears from your eyes. "Every time I watch this movie I cry. At first I thought it was just sad but now I have a boyfriend and I can just imagine what I would do if that was him," you said. You looked at Caleb, who was sniffing quietly to himself.
"Oh my god, are you crying?" said Emily who then continued with, "That wasn't sad! It just pissed me off that it ended so wrongly! Why are you guys so sad?"
You laughed to try and cheer yourself up. "So now what should we do?" asked Caleb. You thought about it.
You then stood up and walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a six pack of beers. You didn't really like beer but it worked. You threw two cans to each of them and grabbed two for yourself.
You all opened your cans at the same time and made a cheer as you all drank at the same moment. You figured you might as well drown some sorrows.
Of course, 2 beers wouldn't get you completely wasted unless you were a lightweight. But they might put a few things off your mind.
"Lauri, do you play any instruments?" you asked randomly.
"I've been playing drums for 6 years." She replied. You smiled and said, "Well this idea is coming together nicely."
The next morning Emily called and left a message that said, "I'll be in townin a fewweeks. I hope to see you soon! Tell the boys I said hi next time you talk to them!"
You sighed and shook your head smiling. You then turned on the TV and saw AFI again. "Why are they always on whenever I want to watch TV?" you asked to no one in particular seeing as everyone was still asleep.
You then had an idea. You check to see if the show was live. You then grabbed your phone and dialed Jade's cell phone. You doubt he had it turned on but to your surprise, the idiot left it on. You saw a phone ringing on the TV as all the band turned and looked at Jade. He looked at the number on the phone and looked at the guys. "Can I please take it? It's kind of important,"
"I'll let you take it this time but next time, turn it off before we walk out!" yelled Davey. Jade smiled shyly and walked off camera. You then heard his voice on the phone. "Hello?"
You grinned. "Oh did I interrupt your interview?"
"You did that on purpose, didn't you?"
"Maybe I did. Maybe I just wanted to call you and hear your cheerful voice."
"Cheerful eh? This cheerful enough for you? I'm a wreck without you here. How are you doing?"
"Okay, I guess. I'm getting a band together and we're going to try to go for a record deal but otherwise, I'm doing shitty health wise."
"What? What did you do?"
You paused. You couldn't tell him you started smoking and drinking. That'd just make him worry.
"I have a cold, that's all. It's killing me. But I made friends with someone who looks just like you. I'll manage a little longer but if you don't come back, don't expect me to be in one piece."
"Oh, yeah. About that, the company is planning more stuff..."
"No, you're coming home. You have to; I'm hardly standing it how it is! I can't do this anymore! There has to be another way!"
"Sigh. I know this is hard. I'm already sick of this whole thing. I want to go home and be with you again,"
You then saw Davey on the screen yelling, "Come on, man. We're not doing this thing without you. You can call your girlfriend later!"
You heard him sigh and say, "Jess, I have to go. I promise I'll call you as soon as I can. I love you,"
"I love you too, bye."
You then watched him walk back on screen and sat down with an agitated look on his face. Davey smiled sympathetically and put his hand on his shoulder.
You frowned and felt a tear roll down your cheek. "What's wrong?" you heard Caleb say as he walked down the stairs. He looked at the screen and said, "Oh," as he sat down next to you.
"I called him. He says he might have to be gone longer than we thought."
"Aw, I'm so sorry," he said as he put his arm around you and pulled you close to him. Then he said, "It must be killing him too though. Look at him. He's all depressed,"
This caused you to cry more. Caleb frowned and raised his hand and wiped your tears away and kissed you on the forehead. You felt calmer as he shh'd you quietly.
"Why are you so nice to someone like me?" you asked.
He sighed and said, "I like you, and you're a nice girl. I want you to smile more often and to be happy. I have a good feeling about what you're going to do with this band. It's a good idea and I want to take part in it as much as I can."
You flashed him a bright grin. "Now that's what I'm talking about." He laughed.
You smiled and stood up. You walked into the kitchen and for some reason you started singing a song from high school musical. It was some part from 'start of something new'. "What the hell? I don't even like that movie..."
You opened the refrigerator and grabbed a can of coke. You sat down and felt more relaxed as you took a sip from your drink.
"In a few weeks, my friend is coming into town. She's the chick who sang with me on stage at warped. Well, I was thinking that maybe we could all meet up and maybe talk to my agent about the band. We could figure out a name and maybe see if we can actually make music together. You know, stuff like that. We also need a few more people. But he's taking care of that this weekend. Right now all we need is a guitarist and maybe Emily can play keyboard."
You shrugged and discussed further into detail. You the heard Lauren come down the stairs. You looked at Caleb who was smiling very widely as she came down wearing a black halter top with black jeans with plaid suspenders on the back.
You could feel his eyes whizzing past you and staring straight at Lauren. You sighed and stood up and went upstairs and looked at yourself in the bathroom mirror. Your red hair was vibrant and cropped in a side part with some bangs in your face. You tried to smile but your smile just dropped into a scowl. You shut the bathroom door and sat down on the toilet seat. You rested your head on your fist as you thought about a lot of things.
This was really hard for you going on like this. It was really breaking you down.
But why was it that big a deal? I mean, you loved being with him and all but why was it this terrible without him. You were doing fine before you met him. Men. Why do they this to you?
You wrapped your arms around yourself to keep yourself from collapsing. You then felt vibration in your left hand, which was holding the phone. You answered, "Hello?"
"Jess! Hey I called to see what you were up to. I'm sorry I had to hang up on you earlier. I really didn't want to, you know,"
"Oh Jade, of course I know that. I was watching the show when I called you. I just miss you so much..." you said nibbling on your lip ring.
"I miss you too. More than you know. It's so weird. I don't know how I got around before I met you. But man, it gets lonely being on tour."
"It gets lonely no matter where you're at. Why did you make me love you so much? It's hurting me so much being without you."
He sighed.
"I know that it's going to be hard to convince you that everything is going to be fine when I come back. But I promise you that it will be so worth it."
"What are you going to do? Wrap me up in bondage or something?" You joked.
He laughed and said, "God, kill the serious moment why don't you? Hehe, I'm just happy that I can hear you beautiful voice over the phone. You should sing me something so I can go to sleep with a smile on my face."
"No way, that'd be like a corny movie repeat."
"So? It'd make me feel happy...in my boxers,"
You lost your breath for a second hearing him say that. You shook it off and said, "Ah, you made me have one of those teenage first syndromes. You know, where they lose their breath and feel like their stomachs drop."
"Deary, I get those every time I talk to you."
"Damnit, you made me get another one," you twitched.
You heard him snicker as he asked, "Do you have an e-mail address?"
"Eh, sort of. I only go on it once in awhile because its only on an old laptop."
"Well, give me the address. I'm going to send pictures from my cell. Do you have a digital camera?"
"Yeah,"
"Good send me pictures of you. I can take some from my cell."
You gave him the address and got onto your computer but before you got your computer, you noticed some action on the couch. "What are you guys doing?" you asked. Lauren looked up and said, "We're having a pity party. This is how we get over it." Then they both cracked up and sat up from the couch. "God, when I go out of the room, you two are all over each other. Tsk tsk." You said as you sat down on the kitchen table with your laptop. You grabbed your digital camera and hooked it up to the computer.
"Did you get them yet?"
"Not yet...oh here they are!" you yelled as you opened the file. "Aw Jade you look so lonely in these pictures."
"I just took those a few minutes ago."
"Oh. Why do you look so sad?"
"I'm here without, baby! But you're still on my lonely mind!" he squeaked/sung out horribly.
"Oh god, my ears!" you yelled.
"Oh, I got the pictures you sent. Let's seen now...wow, your hair is so long! You have such pretty eyes, I wish you'd try to smile a little in these pictures."
"How can I ever smile again? It hurts to grin."
"Ha, I know what that's like. Well, I got to go. People are screaming my name everywhere I go and everyone needs me for something so I'm going to leave with, "I love you," and I'll see you soon hopefully. We might have a concert there so if we're lucky we can visit. Talk to you later."
"Bye," you said as you hung up. You walked in the other room and saw your roommates walk in the door with a bunch of suitcases in their hands. As soon as Geiger saw your friends sitting on the couch, he said, "Jess, what'd I tell you about renting the house out while we're gone?" You laughed as you looked at Caleb and Lauren. They were sitting close to each other and had a feeling they would be going out sooner or later. Good for them, you thought.
Later, after everyone left and it was just you and your roommates, you sat and relaxed and thought about a lot of stuff. You wondered about what Jade was doing right now.