Life was so outrageously unpredictable.

I couldn't even imagine what it had in store for us next.


Chapter 7

"Hey, Alex! Get in here and come read this!"

He came bounding across the length of the bus to where I was sitting sprawled out in front of the TV, my laptop resting on top of my thighs. Zack was stretched out on the other seat across from us, and I could hear Rian snoring from his bunk. Matt had been left with the responsibility of getting us to our next destination, and I had been spending the last two hours looking up smut on the internet. Just now I had found a particularly raunchy one featuring Alex and I, and naturally my first reaction was to make Alex read it. "What is it?" He sat on the floor next to me as I angled the laptop screen so he could see it. "Just a little fan sexual frustration," I laughed.

While he read over what I had already seen I thought about how our fans might react if they knew that some of their fantasies had actually happened right under their radars, maybe even at one of the shows they had attended. I wondered how we had managed to keep this secret for so long. It took maybe a day for Nothing Personal to leak across the world wide web, and yet no one had even dug up one little piece of concrete evidence that Alex and I...

It was in that moment that I remembered a certain detail from that night at the hotel.

One very important thing that had somehow abandoned all recognition in my mind.

Zack and Rian.

"What the fuck is going on?"

My eyes shot open, and we both turned towards the door, where Rian and Zack were watching us with horrified expressions.

I glanced over at Zack, intent on the movie he was watching, and thought of Rian asleep in his bunk. They had both been there that night, had both seen what Alex and I had been doing, yet neither of them had breathed a word of it. I thought back to the incident between Zack and I, and shuddered. What had that been about anyways? It was like it never even happened. I didn't know whether to feel relieved, or worried. Why had neither of them been treating us differently?

Well, one thing was for sure. I definitely was not about to question them on it.

"Damn," Alex said as he finished the story, running a hand through his hair as a grin played at the corners of his lips. "Some people have quite the imaginations." He was giving me one of those looks that made my face melt into a pink haze of burning embarrassment. I felt the blush flood into my cheeks before I saw the devilish sparkle arise in Alex's eyes. I nodded in agreement, "Yeah... they're pretty - uhm - interesting."

From my peripheral vision I saw Zack glance in our direction before turning back to the TV. I felt an intense and sudden feeling of paranoia wash over me. Now that I remembered everything, it was like I couldn't make myself forget it again. It was as if any moment he would jump up and declare that he knew what we were doing, and he was going to tell everyone. Even thinking it made me feel bad - like I was betraying Zack as a friend by not trusting him. I mean, he hadn't told anyone up to this point; neither had Rian.

Maybe it was stupid of me and I was just blowing my worries completely out of proportion.

Just maybe though...

"That's one way to put it," Alex laughed and pushed himself off the floor again. He lifted my legs effortlessly with one arm, sat down, and then placed them across his legs. I had to force myself not to smile like a moron. We sat like this for awhile in silence while I continued to look up random things about the band online and Alex contented himself to watching the movie with Zack. Eventually the movie ended and I shutdown the laptop, declaring I needed to get my beauty sleep. Zack laughed. "You're going to be sleeping for a long time then." I screwed up my face and made an indignant noise. "Suck my dick. My father invented toaster-stroodle."

"Yeah, that's why Jack's hair is so big - it's full of secrets."

Zack laughed, shaking his head as he got up. "Don't make me push you in front of a bus."

"Do it, Bitch! You give me a piece of your crown anyway!" I jumped up for the couch, presenting my fists in Zack's face. It was kind of like a mouse trying to seem intimidating to a lion - and just as pathetic. Zack smirked and tackled me before I even had a chance to squeal like a little girl, locking me in a choke-hold with one of his massive arms. I whined as best as I could, "Zack! Jesus, let me go! It's not fair! Damnit, Zack! Let go! Fuck!" I growled and clawed at his arm, which only succeeded in him laughing harder. At last he slackened his grip and I fell to the floor. He smiled down at me with the air of someone who had just accomplished a great victory, and I couldn't help it as my bottom jutted out.

"You suck," I mumbled, crossed my arms and pouted.

Alex had been giggling uncontrollably since I'd brandished my fists, but now he threw himself onto the ground next to me in a tackle-hug and started pushing my hair around. "Alex, what the fuck are you doing?" He grinned and stared up at Zack with mocking eyes, "Jack's hair is so sexy when it's pushed back. Zack - tell Jack his hair looks sexy when it's pushed back." I squirmed out from under him as they laughed and scrambled on hands and knees to the front of the bus where Matt was intent on the road. "Maaaaaaatt..." I whined as he glanced quickly over to look at me. "What do you want? I'm driving."

"Can we stop at Burger King?"

"What?"

"Bur-ger K-in-g."

He glared at me for as long as he could without running off the road and crashing the bus into a ditch. I just smiled sweetly at him with the most innocent look I could muster. After a moment of going back in forth between him watching the road and glaring at me, he glanced at the clock on the dash and then sighed loudly. "Fine, okay. I need a break from driving anyways and we're ahead of schedule." I jumped up, grinning. "Thanks, Flyzik!" He mumbled something under his breath before pulling off the highway. It look us ten minutes to find the Burger King, and after that, all recollection of time was lost.

"Should we wake up Rian?"

"Nah, that's just one more mouth to feed. He shouldn't have been sleeping."

I glanced at Rian's sleeping form for a moment before shrugging my shoulders and following Alex out of the bus with Zack and Matt. After all, who could argue with that kind of logic? We staggered across the busy parking lot together, winding through other fast-food goers and parked vehicles, and took our place in line inside the restaurant. I leaned into Alex as we contemplated the menu together. "Dude, what are you getting?" He chewed on the inside of his cheek. "I'm thinking that angry Whopper sounds pretty damn good." Matt turned to him. "That has jalapeno peppers on it. Are you insane?"

Alex laughed, "Ch-yeah."

"We should all get it," Zack and Matt turned to look at me as if I had just suggested we all take the bus on a joyride to Mexico. "C'mon, don't be pussies." By the time we had made our way up to the front of the line and the girl behind the counter asked us what we would like, we had agreed upon everyone getting the Angry Whopper. "Is that for here or to go?" Matt glanced back at us and a chorus of 'Here's' told our cashier our decision. While we waited for our food I wandered off and picked out a booth for us to sit at. As I sat down, I noticed a group of girls eying me with equal looks of shock and disbelief on their faces. I swore one of them squealed when Alex, Zack, and Matt sat down next to me.

We all looked down at our burgers - sharing similar looks that each clearly stated 'what the hell had we been thinking?' before we picked them up and let them hover in front of our mouths. "Alright," Alex said finally,"On the count of three we'll all take a big bite. Ready? One, two, three!" We all bit a large chunk off of the massive burger and began the struggled to chew the huge amounts in our mouths.

And it wasn't all that bad...

For the first five seconds.

I knew immediately when I had bitten into my first piece of jalapeno pepper. The surge of spicy heat sent an electric current through my taste-buds and as they screamed their protest to the intense heat, I screamed my protest to the restaurant. "Oh my - oh my god!" I waved my hands in front of my face as I dropped the burger, as if hoping the extra bit of air flow provided by my hands would put out the flame in my mouth. I glanced around the table and saw similar reactions to my own. Alex was blinking too fast as he swore loudly, Matt was crying with his hand over his mouth as he worked fast to chew and swallow the flame, and Zack had his arm on the table with his fist clenched. I looked around frantically on the table for my drink, and was only reduced to a blinding panic as I realized there were none. "Matt! What the fuck dude? Where are the drinks?" He looked down at the table - void of fire destroying beverages- and his face crumpled. "I forgot to get combo's."

"Fuuuuuuuuuck," Alex groaned as he spit his half-chewed burger into a napkin and crumpled it into a ball. I mirrored his actions, as did Matt, and only Zack managed to completely chew and swallow his Angry Whopper from hell. Though the food was gone, we could all still feel the uncomfortable spice burning in our mouths. "I would love anyone who gave me a drink right now."

Suddenly there was a tap on my shoulder and I turned to look up at one of the girls I had noticed earlier.

She was smiling down at me nervously, and in her outstretched hand she held a large coke.

"Here, you look like you need this."

My hands responded quicker than my brain did, and before I could consciously give them permission to, my fingers had wrapped around the cup and I had downed half the contents in one swig. The icy carbonated liquid eased across my tongue and down my throat like heaven; cooling me and stomping out the jalapeno fire. I slumped against the table with relief as the other three girls came over and offered their drinks in order to save the others. It was a few minutes later before I turned to my savior, who was still looking at me excitedly, like she couldn't believe I was real and I had actually just drank her coke. I got up from my seat and wrapped my arms around her. "Thank you. I love you."

She squeaked, a small excited giggle shaking her tiny frame. "You're welcome, Jack. I love you, too."

And that was the last thing I remembered before waking up in what I thought was my bunk, my head pounding furiously at my temples. I squinted my eyes against the dull lights above -the ones that must mean I was actually in the back lounge- and carefully made a check of my senses. The surface under me was soft, yet cool, which meant I was on the couch. There was a hard object wedged precariously between my leg and the cushions that felt only the way a bottle of alcohol could, which would explain the headache clawing its way into my hungover brain. I could hear Alex and Rian snoring and guessed Zack must be there as well. The only thing that scared me was the bus was moving - I could hear the sounds of the highway rushing by as I lay there with my eyes half open.

Did those girls get us drunk out of our minds and then steal our bus?

Oh god.

Ignoring the sudden pain that shot through me as I sat quickly upright, I staggered toward the front of the bus, unsure of what I might see there.


A/N: Enjoy. Reviews would be lovely.

Also, reviews would encourage me to write and update faster! Hint hint. And if you want to add suggestions for future chapters, feel free. Requests for extra chapters at the end will also be taken.

Hope you enjoy the new chapter! x