It was almost 11pm. Bailey parked the car by the buses and quietly got out. Draping her duffle bag over her shoulder, she grabbed the box of pizza out of the back seat, the bag of Taco Bell from the front, and a cup holder consisting of two bright blue Slurpees from 7-11, Joe's favorite. The parking lot was still and no one had really exited the venue; the boys were still inside.
Power-walking through the busses and into the grassy park behind the venue, Bailey tried all her best to keep the stuff she was holding balanced. Her nerves were wrecked and her heart hadn't beat faster than what it was right then. She hoped to God this thing would work. Without a cell phone, it make things 10 times more complicated and risky, but there was no reason why her plan couldn't work out, even though one little thing could alter her plan.
After walking for a straight three minutes, following an almost straight row of little bushes that her and Mandy had stumbled across earlier that afternoon, she was almost to her destination. Before she knew it, she was trailing through a small wooded area. On the other side was a clearing over-looking a beautiful lake. Smiling up, the full moon shown brightly back at her. Setting down the food on a huge, nearby rock, she quickly un-zipped her duffel bag. Pulling out a big, thin blue blanket, she quickly fanned it out over the dirt where it laid softly. She couldn't help but smile when she pulled out the candles from her bag; she knew Joe was going to love this.
A few minutes passes and the scenery was complete. The moon glistened on the calm water, the candles were scattered around the blanket and up on various rocks as the pizza, Taco Bell, and Slurpee's sat off towards one of the corners on the blanket. Nervously, Bailey took a seat facing the water, waiting for her boy to show up.
- - - - -
"Everything is fine, Joe! Really." Mandy rubbed his back as they walked down the hall inside the venue. It was quarter of 12.
"I haven't be able to get a hold of her all day! Do you know how much it sucked, worrying about her like that?" he snapped, looking after at her.
"I know, I know." she sighed. "But it wasn't her fault, her phone broke. She had been calling you all day."
"Uh-huh, sure." Joe glared over at her. "You don't have to lie. I know she's pissed at me."
"First off, you know for a fact that Bailey is the type of girl to get over things quickly. The fact that it's your birthday, she forgot about it even faster. First thing she did this morning was call you, but you had a stupid interview."
"Like I have any control over that!" he exclaimed.
"Shut up! I'm done." Mandy raised her voice. "And what the hell, since when have I ever lied to you, Joseph?"
He groaned. "I didn't mean that." a sigh left his lungs. "I just want to see her, that's all. I just want to get away from everything right now and just be with her. . ." Mandy smiled, hearing the love in his voice. Her smiled faded when his voice rose. "And no one even knows where the hell she is!"
"I'm sure she's fine Joe." she patted his back again. "Look, just head back to the bus. Maybe she's there."
"Alright." he finished, waving to her before making his way outside. Sighing, Mandy turned around and made her way back to Kevin and Nick.
It was a minute or so before Joe was outside of the bus. With his hand on the door, he became nervous. He was anticipating the fact that he was going to be able to hold her again. It had only been 24-hours, but even in that short time it killed him to be away from her. The excitement in his body began to rise.
"Joe, wait up!" he cringed at the voice and slowly turned around to see Ross jogging up to him.
"I haven't seen you all day! How's the big 1-8?" he smiled, not realizing how annoyed Joe was at this point.
"Good." he faked a smile, just wanting to run onto the bus.
"Just good? That's it?" Ross poked at him, making Joe chuckle in frustration.
"Yeah." he cleared his throat, changing the subject to what was really on his mind. "So have you seen Bailey?"
"No, I haven't. That girl has been running all over hell and creation for me today. Let me say, she is one dedicated assistant."
"Yeah yeah, I know." Joe replied quite quickly. "I really need to find her."
"Where ever she is, I'm sure she's fine." Ross glanced around the parking lot, spotting his bright yellow car which informed that his gift had arrived. Smiling, he continued. "I have something for you."
- - - - -
Bailey sighed, looking up at the sky from her back on the blanket. Her hands were under her head and her feet were crossed down by her ankles. Once it hit 11:30, the anxious feeling in her stomach went away. Now it was only hope that filled her mind; hope that Joe would even show. Slowly, the weight was added to her back as she thought about his birthday that was quickly coming to an end with every second. She began to feel bad, thinking about how many people she cussed at as she rushed to get the food earlier, just so she'd make it back in time before he found her note and showed up to this spot. Now she was hoping that the food wouldn't spoil from waiting so long. Who knows how soggy the tacos were at that moment. The candles were even melted down to half their size as time flew by. The guilt inside of her began to take over as she started to tear up, thinking about Joe. It was now only a few minutes shy of midnight.
At the sound of a cracking twig, Bailey sat straight up, staring into the darkness of the path that lead into the woods. Besides the chirping of the crickets around her, it was silent. Her chest began thumping, the pace quickening with every second. The world seemed to stop when she saw Joe appear from the woods. Instantly, she shot up from the blanket and ran over to him. Smiling, he tightly wrapped his open arms around her body as she squeezed her arms around his neck, the side of her head pressing up against his.
"Happy Birthday Happy Birthday Happy Birthday!" she exclaimed, still holding onto him as he rubbed her back. He chuckled.
"Thank you thank you thank you!" her back tingled at his voice. "About last night -"
"Forget about it." she replied honestly, pulling away from his grasp and holding onto his hand. "I have food!" she pulled him over to the blanket.
"Bails, this looks amazing." he stated in awe as he kneeled down onto the blanket, taking in the scenery. "Thanks."
"Anything for you." she smiled over as him, reaching for the Taco Bell bag. She tossed it to him, then grabbed his Slurpee. He shot her a grin and dove into the bag.
"I wish I would've gotten here sooner. Ross was a bit distracting." he stated before stuffing his face.
"It's cool, really." she watched him in amusement and happiness. "You're here now. It's good." He smiled again before gulping down some of the melted goodness.
Moments passed after Joe finished eating. Bailey had had a slice or two of cold pizza before laying back down onto the blanket, looking up at the dark sky. It was only a second before Joe laid his body down next to her, grabbing her hand and interlacing his fingers with hers.
"This is gorgeous." he sighed before an unexpected belch slipped up and out of him. "Ew."
"Joe! Way to kill it." she playfully nudged him.
"Sorry." he chuckled with a cheesy grin. "This would be a hard thing to kill, you did great. I love it." he stated, then brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed it. She looked over into his glistening eyes and smiled; he was amazing. "What?"
"You're cute." she replied simply, trying to keep herself from grinning as she turned her head back so she was looking straight up into the starry sky.
"Not as cute as you." he replied softy, sitting up and leaning down to kiss her on the cheek. Once again, he made her stomach flip. He kissed her cheek again. Slowly closing his eyes, his lips moved from her cheek, down her jaw line, and to her neck.
Closing her eyes in satisfaction, Bailey moved her hand and softly placed it on his waist as he slowly maneuvered his body on top of hers, his arms supporting his top half above her as his waist lightly rested on hers. After a moment, Joe made his way up to her lips. They were soft and tasted like blue raspberries. Smiling, Bailey kissed back, slowly sliding her tongue into his mouth. She brought her hand up to his neck, pulling him down closer to her as she turned her body from underneath him, rolling him onto his back. She swung her leg over his waist and leaned her body down against his as their lips stayed connected. Joe's hands gradually made their way up her thighs and to her waist. He felt her smile on his lips. Bailey ran her fingers through his thick hair as his grip tightened around her waist; she knew he was loving it. She could tell as his lower half tensed up from underneath her.
Their make-out session lasted a little while longer until Bailey felt something vibrate on the inside of her leg.
"I swear to God that better be your phone." she reluctantly pulled her lips away from his with a small laugh. He sighed, then reached in his pocket and flipped open the phone as Bailey sat on his stomach, lifting his shirt up and trailing her fingers along the toned surface. She smiled when she saw the goosebumps begin to form.
"What, Kevin?" he asked into his phone, staring up at the moon. "Alright." he paused.
Alright! Bye."
"One thing I love about having a broken cell phone. . ." she trailed off, looking into his warm eyes. He smiled up at her, wanting more. Bailey sighed, then patted his stomach. "Come on, we should get back." she started to stand up, but Joe grabbed her legs.
"I don't want to go back." he said, pulling her back down on top of him and kissing her.
"We have to. It's past 1:30." she chuckled even though she wanted to stay there just as much as he did.
"Fine." he mumbled, his lips meeting with hers one more time before she stood, pulling him up with her. "Even though this ended up being one of the most boring birthdays ever, this sure made up for it at the last minute." he kissed her cheek before helping her pack up the stuff.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Like, yeah. So, Joe is totally my favorite!" a girl shrieked in line in front of the Wachovia center.
Bailey glared at Sarah as they stood behind the girl and her obnoxious friends. Each one of them were decked out in their Jonas Brothers attire; face paint, shirts with Puffy paint that read 'Marry Me!' on them with other little things. The girls even had signs and gifts fro the boys in their hands. Bailey stared in amusement before getting smacked by Sarah.
"Stop staring, you look just as bad." she scolded, looking down at Bailey's outfit with a huge grin.
"You act like I wanted to wear this!" Bailey exclaimed, failing her arms up. She had a hot pink shirt that read 'I LOVE THE JONAS BROTHERS!' on it in big, bold, black letters with hearts all over the place. Sarah had written a big 'JB' logo on her cheek as well as making her a sign.
"I told you we had to blend in." Sarah replied. Her outfit was pretty much the same, except in purple and Bailey had on a pair of vintage, white Ray Ban sunglasses over her eyes.
"These tickets better get us in." Bailey muttered, not believing what her friend was making her do. Never in a million years had she thought she'd be decked out like this, supporting any kind of band for any reason at all, but Joe was worth it to her.
"I don't know. . .The scalpers were really convincing. . ."
"They better have been for $100!" she exclaimed.
"Oh my God! Doesn't Joe have those sunglasses?!" a girl ahead of them asked, a little too excited.
"Um, I believe so." Bailey replied simply.
"Can I have them?" she asked, making Bailey laugh.
"Are you kidding me?"
"I'll pay you for them!" she stated, Bailey became amused.
"How much?"
"Twenty." the girl replied. She was wearing a white t-shirt with Joe's face ironed on the front.
"Um, I think I'll pass." she chuckled.
Just then, screams were heard from the front of the line. The doors to the venue were opening. Bailey's heart rate picked up as she grabbed and squeezed Sarah's hand, wishing that this plan would work.
- - - - -
"Now I can't see anything." Sarah whined as they stood towards the back of the pit in front of the stage.
"He can't see me during the show! That'll mess up everything. We'll go to the meet and greet afterwards, then it'll go from there."
"What exactly do you expect to happen?" she asked Bailey, making her shrug.
"I have no idea what to expect." Bailey admitted, looking down as the thoughts of rejection soared through her mind. "I don't wanna put him under all that pressure in front of all those people."
"Then what are we going to do? Sneak backstage or something?" Sarah stated sarcastically. Bailey's eyes widened as her lips curled up. "Oh, no. I'm not getting arrested!"
"We won't get arrested. I have a plan."
"Don't we all. . ." Sarah mumbled as Bailey grabbed her hand and lead her out into the lobby of the venue. Bailey held onto her as she lead her through the crowds of people. Nonchalantly, she slipped behind a door that read 'Employees Only'. "Yep, we're totally going to get arrested."
"No we won't, now hush. I've got this." she said coolly, then continued down the long, white hallway. "Now, if I remember correctly, their dressing room should be - " Bailey stopped as they turned the corner, bumping right into Luke, one of the body guards.
"Are you ladies lost?" he asked sternly, looking down at the two girls. Bailey still had her shades on, so he didn't recognize her.
"No sir, just checking out the place." Sarah smiled.
"Uh-huh, let's go ladies." he replied, motioning them to turn around.
"Wait! Aren't you going to give us the test?" Bailey exclaimed.
Luke stopped. "What test?"
"You know, the test you're supposed to give when you run into fans who somehow managed to get backstage." she replied, trying to keep her cool with a smile on her face.
"How do you know about the test?" he questioned.
"Well, uh, you see, there's this thing going around on myspace, and you know, we kind of - "
"Ms.Baker, is that you?" Luke asked, recognizing her voice, reaching for her sunglasses.
"Busted." Sarah muttered.
"It is!" he confirmed as she placed her sunglasses on top of her head. "Where've you been? Last I heard you - "
"Yeah, Ross kicked me off. Long story." she replied dryly. "I really need to see Joe."
Luke stopped for a moment. "I don't know if I'm allowed to do that. . ."
"Luke, I know you're not, but I really need to see him! I haven't spoken to the boy in over two months! I didn't even get to say goodbye and this is my only chance at saying anything to him at all." Bailey's eyes began to water.
He stared at her for a moment before speaking. "Only because I know how much this effected him, I'll let you guys go. And because you were pretty much my favorite JB assistant of all time!" he smiled down at her. "If anyone asks, I have no idea who you two go back here! Got it?" the girls instantly nodded their heads. "Go get 'em."
Sarah swore she hear a squeak come from Bailey as she grabbed her and rushed down the hallway and up to a closed door. Bailey's heart was beating uncontrollably as she raised her hand to knock on the door. Before she could make contact, the door opened. Kevin stood there in shock, staring into her watery eyes.
"Hey." he said softly, then embraced her in a big hug as she plunged forward at him.
"I'm so sorry, I couldn't say goodbye. Ross - " she felt overwhelmed, even if it was just Kevin. She knew that Joe had to be close by. Her moment was quickly approaching.
"It's cool, I kinda figured." Kevin replied, pulling away. "Joe is, uh - "
Bailey's heart stopped as she watched Joe appear behind Kevin in the doorway, his face expressionless. She didn't know what to do or what to say. She couldn't even control the fact that he captivated her gaze yet again.
"Why are you here?" Joe asked blankly, staring back at her.
Instantly, she snapped out of it. "What?" she managed to ask.
"I didn't stutter." he spat, his face growing cold.
"Joe!" Kevin spun around to glare at his brother, disbelief covering his face.
"- And why are you wearing that?" he questioned, looking at her outfit. She shook her head and looked down, a single tear slipping out of her eye.
"You know what Joe, - " Bailey tried to keep her shaky voice under control. " - this game is really getting old."
"Yeah, tell me about it." he crossed his arms in front of him, his face still emotionless.
"What is wrong with you?" she asked in disbelief, staring into his empty eyes.
"What's wrong with you? You're the one who walked out, not me."
"More like dragged out." she spat, not letting another tear fall from her eyes. Stunned by the sour vibe he was sending out, her sadness started to turn into anger. "After two months, do you even know what really happened?" he huffed at her, then looked away. "Ross woke me up early that morning, practically dragging me out of the hotel."
"I'm sure it wasn't that dramatic." Joe interrupted.
Bailey groaned, frustrated by his attitude. "Are you even going to hear me out? That's exactly what Ross did, he shut me down, just like you're doing! Now look where we are." she finished, throwing her hands up.
"Cut it out." Kevin exclaimed, staring mostly at his brother.
"Do you know what it's been like, the past two months not being able to get a hold of you? Not knowing where you really were or what really happened? How many nights I stayed up, not being able to sleep because all I could think about was you." Joe's voice cracked a bit as he clenched his fists. "It was the worst feeling in the world. How could you put me through that?"
"How do you think things were for me, Joe? Huh? You think I was skipping home to sing happy songs about how I was forced to leave the one person that I was completely falling for? You think I chose to leave? How many nights to you think I stayed up, thinking, wondering, crying, wishing that I'd be able to even speak to you again? I don't know if you've noticed, but you're not the easiest person to get a hold of, especially when people are out there trying to prevent any contact what-so-ever!" her tears were flowing but her voice stayed strong. "The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt you." Joe's eyes sparkled a bit as a tear dripped down his cheek. Quickly, he wiped it away with a big sniff.
Kevin then motioned for Sarah to follow him. The two walked down the hall, leaving Bailey and Joe alone. After a moment of silence, Joe waved for her to come into the dressing room. Closing and locking the door behind him, he rubbed his face, not believing what was happening.
Bailey glared at Sarah as they stood behind the girl and her obnoxious friends. Each one of them were decked out in their Jonas Brothers attire; face paint, shirts with Puffy paint that read 'Marry Me!' on them with other little things. The girls even had signs and gifts fro the boys in their hands. Bailey stared in amusement before getting smacked by Sarah.
"Stop staring, you look just as bad." she scolded, looking down at Bailey's outfit with a huge grin.
"You act like I wanted to wear this!" Bailey exclaimed, failing her arms up. She had a hot pink shirt that read 'I LOVE THE JONAS BROTHERS!' on it in big, bold, black letters with hearts all over the place. Sarah had written a big 'JB' logo on her cheek as well as making her a sign.
"I told you we had to blend in." Sarah replied. Her outfit was pretty much the same, except in purple and Bailey had on a pair of vintage, white Ray Ban sunglasses over her eyes.
"These tickets better get us in." Bailey muttered, not believing what her friend was making her do. Never in a million years had she thought she'd be decked out like this, supporting any kind of band for any reason at all, but Joe was worth it to her.
"I don't know. . .The scalpers were really convincing. . ."
"They better have been for $100!" she exclaimed.
"Oh my God! Doesn't Joe have those sunglasses?!" a girl ahead of them asked, a little too excited.
"Um, I believe so." Bailey replied simply.
"Can I have them?" she asked, making Bailey laugh.
"Are you kidding me?"
"I'll pay you for them!" she stated, Bailey became amused.
"How much?"
"Twenty." the girl replied. She was wearing a white t-shirt with Joe's face ironed on the front.
"Um, I think I'll pass." she chuckled.
Just then, screams were heard from the front of the line. The doors to the venue were opening. Bailey's heart rate picked up as she grabbed and squeezed Sarah's hand, wishing that this plan would work.
- - - - -
"Now I can't see anything." Sarah whined as they stood towards the back of the pit in front of the stage.
"He can't see me during the show! That'll mess up everything. We'll go to the meet and greet afterwards, then it'll go from there."
"What exactly do you expect to happen?" she asked Bailey, making her shrug.
"I have no idea what to expect." Bailey admitted, looking down as the thoughts of rejection soared through her mind. "I don't wanna put him under all that pressure in front of all those people."
"Then what are we going to do? Sneak backstage or something?" Sarah stated sarcastically. Bailey's eyes widened as her lips curled up. "Oh, no. I'm not getting arrested!"
"We won't get arrested. I have a plan."
"Don't we all. . ." Sarah mumbled as Bailey grabbed her hand and lead her out into the lobby of the venue. Bailey held onto her as she lead her through the crowds of people. Nonchalantly, she slipped behind a door that read 'Employees Only'. "Yep, we're totally going to get arrested."
"No we won't, now hush. I've got this." she said coolly, then continued down the long, white hallway. "Now, if I remember correctly, their dressing room should be - " Bailey stopped as they turned the corner, bumping right into Luke, one of the body guards.
"Are you ladies lost?" he asked sternly, looking down at the two girls. Bailey still had her shades on, so he didn't recognize her.
"No sir, just checking out the place." Sarah smiled.
"Uh-huh, let's go ladies." he replied, motioning them to turn around.
"Wait! Aren't you going to give us the test?" Bailey exclaimed.
Luke stopped. "What test?"
"You know, the test you're supposed to give when you run into fans who somehow managed to get backstage." she replied, trying to keep her cool with a smile on her face.
"How do you know about the test?" he questioned.
"Well, uh, you see, there's this thing going around on myspace, and you know, we kind of - "
"Ms.Baker, is that you?" Luke asked, recognizing her voice, reaching for her sunglasses.
"Busted." Sarah muttered.
"It is!" he confirmed as she placed her sunglasses on top of her head. "Where've you been? Last I heard you - "
"Yeah, Ross kicked me off. Long story." she replied dryly. "I really need to see Joe."
Luke stopped for a moment. "I don't know if I'm allowed to do that. . ."
"Luke, I know you're not, but I really need to see him! I haven't spoken to the boy in over two months! I didn't even get to say goodbye and this is my only chance at saying anything to him at all." Bailey's eyes began to water.
He stared at her for a moment before speaking. "Only because I know how much this effected him, I'll let you guys go. And because you were pretty much my favorite JB assistant of all time!" he smiled down at her. "If anyone asks, I have no idea who you two go back here! Got it?" the girls instantly nodded their heads. "Go get 'em."
Sarah swore she hear a squeak come from Bailey as she grabbed her and rushed down the hallway and up to a closed door. Bailey's heart was beating uncontrollably as she raised her hand to knock on the door. Before she could make contact, the door opened. Kevin stood there in shock, staring into her watery eyes.
"Hey." he said softly, then embraced her in a big hug as she plunged forward at him.
"I'm so sorry, I couldn't say goodbye. Ross - " she felt overwhelmed, even if it was just Kevin. She knew that Joe had to be close by. Her moment was quickly approaching.
"It's cool, I kinda figured." Kevin replied, pulling away. "Joe is, uh - "
Bailey's heart stopped as she watched Joe appear behind Kevin in the doorway, his face expressionless. She didn't know what to do or what to say. She couldn't even control the fact that he captivated her gaze yet again.
"Why are you here?" Joe asked blankly, staring back at her.
Instantly, she snapped out of it. "What?" she managed to ask.
"I didn't stutter." he spat, his face growing cold.
"Joe!" Kevin spun around to glare at his brother, disbelief covering his face.
"- And why are you wearing that?" he questioned, looking at her outfit. She shook her head and looked down, a single tear slipping out of her eye.
"You know what Joe, - " Bailey tried to keep her shaky voice under control. " - this game is really getting old."
"Yeah, tell me about it." he crossed his arms in front of him, his face still emotionless.
"What is wrong with you?" she asked in disbelief, staring into his empty eyes.
"What's wrong with you? You're the one who walked out, not me."
"More like dragged out." she spat, not letting another tear fall from her eyes. Stunned by the sour vibe he was sending out, her sadness started to turn into anger. "After two months, do you even know what really happened?" he huffed at her, then looked away. "Ross woke me up early that morning, practically dragging me out of the hotel."
"I'm sure it wasn't that dramatic." Joe interrupted.
Bailey groaned, frustrated by his attitude. "Are you even going to hear me out? That's exactly what Ross did, he shut me down, just like you're doing! Now look where we are." she finished, throwing her hands up.
"Cut it out." Kevin exclaimed, staring mostly at his brother.
"Do you know what it's been like, the past two months not being able to get a hold of you? Not knowing where you really were or what really happened? How many nights I stayed up, not being able to sleep because all I could think about was you." Joe's voice cracked a bit as he clenched his fists. "It was the worst feeling in the world. How could you put me through that?"
"How do you think things were for me, Joe? Huh? You think I was skipping home to sing happy songs about how I was forced to leave the one person that I was completely falling for? You think I chose to leave? How many nights to you think I stayed up, thinking, wondering, crying, wishing that I'd be able to even speak to you again? I don't know if you've noticed, but you're not the easiest person to get a hold of, especially when people are out there trying to prevent any contact what-so-ever!" her tears were flowing but her voice stayed strong. "The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt you." Joe's eyes sparkled a bit as a tear dripped down his cheek. Quickly, he wiped it away with a big sniff.
Kevin then motioned for Sarah to follow him. The two walked down the hall, leaving Bailey and Joe alone. After a moment of silence, Joe waved for her to come into the dressing room. Closing and locking the door behind him, he rubbed his face, not believing what was happening.
About 3 hours went by. Joe was now laying in the bed with an ice pack resting on his forehead and Bailey's body was aligned against his as she stared up at the ceiling with his free arm wrapped around her shoulders. They laid in silence as Sarah clicked around on the laptop and Kevin and Nick stared at the TV screen.
A few workers of the hotel came up to check up on the two about 20 minutes after the incident. Kevin stood his place at the door, assuring the clerk that everything was fine. Since then, things had been quiet. No one had heard anything from Tori or Jake, and Mr. & Mrs.Jonas hadn't returned yet with Frankie.
The stillness in the room was broken with a knock on the door.
"Got it." Nick stated, then hopped off the couch and opened the door. "What?" he asked sternly at the person standing in front of him. He tried not to smile at her black eye.
"Let Bailey know that Ross will be here in the morning." Bailey tensed up at the sound of Tori's voice. "It'd save some time if you told her to pack her bags now."
Joe tightened his grip around Bailey as he felt her muscles trying to pull herself up. "You're not going anywhere." he said softly into her ear, then kissed her temple.
As much as she wanted to believe him, she knew that when Ross got there everything was going to explode. After hearing Nick shut the door, she nuzzled her head into Joe's chest. Nick scratched his head, not knowing if he should repeat what he was just told, or assume that everyone had heard.
Bailey sighed, letting Nick know that he didn't have to say anything. With that, he made his way back to the couch. She sat up on the bed, pulling away from Joe. His back rested against the headboard and his legs were stretched out in front of him. She placed her hand on his leg, then turned her head and looked at him. Once again, she got lost in his warm eyes. He brought his hand up and rubbed the small of her back for comfort. A tingle fluttered up her spine, making her realize that she really cared for him and that he felt the same.
Holding back tears, she leaned in towards him. Softly, their lips met. Joe placed the ice pack down next to him, then rested his hand on her jaw line as she pulled her body closer to him. With Joe still sitting on the bed, she swung her leg over and straddled his waist. After realizing that the others had made their way into his parents' room, he moved his hands down to her waist, then to her thighs.
Bailey kissed him deeply and passionately as her heart thumped in her mind. Oh how she loved being in his arms, his moist lips pecking hers. He was the only guy to ever make her feel so comfortable, loved, and wonderful all at once, all the time. After a moment, she pulled her lips away and rested her forehead on his. She slowly opened to eyes, staring directly at him. A tiny smile formed on her face, making him chuckle.
"What?" she asked quietly.
"You're gorgeous." he whispered.
"You're more gorgeous." she replied cheekily.
"Hm, even with this black eye?" Joe asked as she pulled back, sitting on his lap.
She lightly touched it with her finger. "It actually doesn't look that bad. -But yes, even with that black eye."
"It doesn't hurt anymore." he stated.
"Joe, I'm really sorry."
"It's not your fault, so stop saying sorry. The guy had it coming." he smirked, then grasped her hand in his.
"That's not going to stop me from going home tomorrow."
"Bailey, stop. You're not going home!" he exclaimed. She got up off his lap and walked across the room as the tears fell. "I'll get my mom to talk to Ross." he added.
Hearing that made her believe even more that she was going to be receiving a plane ticket to Philly tomorrow morning.
"I give up." Bailey stated, her back towards Joe.
"Give up?" he repeated, sliding off the bed. "On what? Us?"
Bailey turned to face him. The silent tears continued to fall. "This is too much, Joe. After two weeks -"
"Stop saying that! 'Two weeks'. So what? This happened!" he pointed at his heart, then to hers. "Yeah, two weeks, and I love it! Things have been perfect," she lowered his eyes at him. "-between us. It would've been paradise without the outside barging in." Bailey didn't know what to say to him. "I'm going to do everything in my power to get you to stay."
"Joe." she stared at him from across the room.
"I mean it." he finished sternly.
- - - - -
Bailey woke up the next morning with something cold on her face. Slowly, she opened her eyes to see a dark figure standing above her. The room was pitch black and the room was still.
"Let's go." she listened to Ross' harsh whisper. "Hurry and let's go, before you wake anyone up." she heard him rustling a bag beside the pull-out couch. Bailey looked over to see Joe sound asleep next to her, his hair was sticking every which way as he drooled on his pillow.
"What time is it?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.
"4am. Now let's go!" his voice was harsh but quiet.
"Are you even going to hear me out?" Bailey hissed at him, standing up from the bed.
"We don't have time for that now." tears stared to form in her eyes. "Plane takes off at 6, we could grab breakfast at the airport before you go."
"Ross, -"
"Now." he finished sternly, starting for the door. "-And I swear, if you wake any of the boys up, you'll be in deeper shit than you are in now."
The tears rolled once he shut the hotel door, leaving her in the darkness. Her mind was screaming to wake Joe up, just to kiss him one last time. To tell him that'd she'd be fine and that he'd be better off without her there anyway. Instead, she grabbed her duffel bag, slipped on her flip flops and exited the quiet room wearing a pair of tiny PJ shorts and Joe's "PONED" shirt.
Too upset to talk, Bailey silently followed Ross down the hallway and onto the elevator. The tension was insane. She couldn't believe this was happening; she was really leaving; without a goodbye. Before the elevator doors opened to the lobby, Ross stole a glance at her tear-stained face. Quickly looking away, he headed through the lobby, out the door and into a taxi cab.
The ride to the airport was silent. Every once in a while, Ross would look at her saddened face, but still he didn't cave. What he was doing was for the best, for everyone. Once entering the airport, Bailey finally cracked.
"- And you're not even going to hear me out?" she forced the words out of her mouth, her voice coming out a little louder than she wanted it to. There was so much frustration leaking out of her, there were so many things she wanted to scream at him, but people already started to stare.
"I think I've heard enough." he replied simply, leading her through the commotion of the airport.
"Heard enough from who, Tori?" she asked, sounding amused. Quickly, her sadness was transforming into anger.
"You did a number on her face." Ross glared down at her. "Your mother isn't too happy about that." Bailey groaned. "For a smart girl, you did a really stupid thing."
"If she hadn't -"
"Bailey, I don't want to hear it."
"This is the problem, Ross! You won't hear me out! There are two sides to every story." she exclaimed, throwing her hands up as they weaved in and out of people.
"You've obviously seen what happened to Joe! If it wasn't for you, he'd be fine!" he replied. "If these boys are going to be at risk with you here, then you need to go."
"Are you kidding me?" Bailey's response was packed with attitude.
"There's no use in talking about it, you're going home and that's final!"
"You don't even know the half of it! Jake -"
"BAILEY, YOU'RE GOING HOME!" he yelled, making the people around them stop to look at them. She bit her tongue, looking up at him, not wanting another tear to fall because of him. He had won, she was going home. "I don't want you contacting anyone in the crew either." he glanced over at her as they approached her gate. "If I find out you're still talking to Joe, or anyone, there will be bigger issues than there are now. You hear me?"
Bailey narrowed her eyes, concentrating on what was going on in front of her. All she wanted to do was scream. Scream and punch the hell of the evil bastard next to her. She had no idea why he was doing this or why he was speaking of the unbelievable, but she felt like she was having a horrible nightmare.
- - - - -
"She was all I ever wanted,
She was all I ever needed and more.
She walked out my door.
And she went away
Left my heart in two.
Left me standing here
Singing all these blues.
And you left without a single word
Not even 'sorry'
I might've hurt worse to hear you say
'I'm leaving, goodbye.'
But your smile still makes my heart sing
Another sad song.
I can't forget it,
Won't regret it.
'Cause I'm still in love with you."
Joe sang sadly into the Miami crowd, Bailey's picture in his mind. He watched as the crowd sung along with him, completely oblivious of to what the lyrics were even about. His nose started to burn, wanting to cry right then, thinking about how he woke up that morning without her. Thinking of the conversation they had the night before, right after they talked to his mom about everything, loving how she was so supportive. How they talked about how much they cared for each other and just loved being around one another. After they had decided to pull through the drama and everything that was going on, she got up and left. He couldn't believe it.
He tried getting a hold of her, millions of times it seemed, but he got nothing. Just her voice on her answering machine. His heart ached every time he dialed her number, hoping, wishing for her to pick up after that 3rd ring. Even after Ross had told him to let her go, he disobeyed his orders and tried anyway. It was no use. It felt as if she was gone forever.
A few workers of the hotel came up to check up on the two about 20 minutes after the incident. Kevin stood his place at the door, assuring the clerk that everything was fine. Since then, things had been quiet. No one had heard anything from Tori or Jake, and Mr. & Mrs.Jonas hadn't returned yet with Frankie.
The stillness in the room was broken with a knock on the door.
"Got it." Nick stated, then hopped off the couch and opened the door. "What?" he asked sternly at the person standing in front of him. He tried not to smile at her black eye.
"Let Bailey know that Ross will be here in the morning." Bailey tensed up at the sound of Tori's voice. "It'd save some time if you told her to pack her bags now."
Joe tightened his grip around Bailey as he felt her muscles trying to pull herself up. "You're not going anywhere." he said softly into her ear, then kissed her temple.
As much as she wanted to believe him, she knew that when Ross got there everything was going to explode. After hearing Nick shut the door, she nuzzled her head into Joe's chest. Nick scratched his head, not knowing if he should repeat what he was just told, or assume that everyone had heard.
Bailey sighed, letting Nick know that he didn't have to say anything. With that, he made his way back to the couch. She sat up on the bed, pulling away from Joe. His back rested against the headboard and his legs were stretched out in front of him. She placed her hand on his leg, then turned her head and looked at him. Once again, she got lost in his warm eyes. He brought his hand up and rubbed the small of her back for comfort. A tingle fluttered up her spine, making her realize that she really cared for him and that he felt the same.
Holding back tears, she leaned in towards him. Softly, their lips met. Joe placed the ice pack down next to him, then rested his hand on her jaw line as she pulled her body closer to him. With Joe still sitting on the bed, she swung her leg over and straddled his waist. After realizing that the others had made their way into his parents' room, he moved his hands down to her waist, then to her thighs.
Bailey kissed him deeply and passionately as her heart thumped in her mind. Oh how she loved being in his arms, his moist lips pecking hers. He was the only guy to ever make her feel so comfortable, loved, and wonderful all at once, all the time. After a moment, she pulled her lips away and rested her forehead on his. She slowly opened to eyes, staring directly at him. A tiny smile formed on her face, making him chuckle.
"What?" she asked quietly.
"You're gorgeous." he whispered.
"You're more gorgeous." she replied cheekily.
"Hm, even with this black eye?" Joe asked as she pulled back, sitting on his lap.
She lightly touched it with her finger. "It actually doesn't look that bad. -But yes, even with that black eye."
"It doesn't hurt anymore." he stated.
"Joe, I'm really sorry."
"It's not your fault, so stop saying sorry. The guy had it coming." he smirked, then grasped her hand in his.
"That's not going to stop me from going home tomorrow."
"Bailey, stop. You're not going home!" he exclaimed. She got up off his lap and walked across the room as the tears fell. "I'll get my mom to talk to Ross." he added.
Hearing that made her believe even more that she was going to be receiving a plane ticket to Philly tomorrow morning.
"I give up." Bailey stated, her back towards Joe.
"Give up?" he repeated, sliding off the bed. "On what? Us?"
Bailey turned to face him. The silent tears continued to fall. "This is too much, Joe. After two weeks -"
"Stop saying that! 'Two weeks'. So what? This happened!" he pointed at his heart, then to hers. "Yeah, two weeks, and I love it! Things have been perfect," she lowered his eyes at him. "-between us. It would've been paradise without the outside barging in." Bailey didn't know what to say to him. "I'm going to do everything in my power to get you to stay."
"Joe." she stared at him from across the room.
"I mean it." he finished sternly.
- - - - -
Bailey woke up the next morning with something cold on her face. Slowly, she opened her eyes to see a dark figure standing above her. The room was pitch black and the room was still.
"Let's go." she listened to Ross' harsh whisper. "Hurry and let's go, before you wake anyone up." she heard him rustling a bag beside the pull-out couch. Bailey looked over to see Joe sound asleep next to her, his hair was sticking every which way as he drooled on his pillow.
"What time is it?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.
"4am. Now let's go!" his voice was harsh but quiet.
"Are you even going to hear me out?" Bailey hissed at him, standing up from the bed.
"We don't have time for that now." tears stared to form in her eyes. "Plane takes off at 6, we could grab breakfast at the airport before you go."
"Ross, -"
"Now." he finished sternly, starting for the door. "-And I swear, if you wake any of the boys up, you'll be in deeper shit than you are in now."
The tears rolled once he shut the hotel door, leaving her in the darkness. Her mind was screaming to wake Joe up, just to kiss him one last time. To tell him that'd she'd be fine and that he'd be better off without her there anyway. Instead, she grabbed her duffel bag, slipped on her flip flops and exited the quiet room wearing a pair of tiny PJ shorts and Joe's "PONED" shirt.
Too upset to talk, Bailey silently followed Ross down the hallway and onto the elevator. The tension was insane. She couldn't believe this was happening; she was really leaving; without a goodbye. Before the elevator doors opened to the lobby, Ross stole a glance at her tear-stained face. Quickly looking away, he headed through the lobby, out the door and into a taxi cab.
The ride to the airport was silent. Every once in a while, Ross would look at her saddened face, but still he didn't cave. What he was doing was for the best, for everyone. Once entering the airport, Bailey finally cracked.
"- And you're not even going to hear me out?" she forced the words out of her mouth, her voice coming out a little louder than she wanted it to. There was so much frustration leaking out of her, there were so many things she wanted to scream at him, but people already started to stare.
"I think I've heard enough." he replied simply, leading her through the commotion of the airport.
"Heard enough from who, Tori?" she asked, sounding amused. Quickly, her sadness was transforming into anger.
"You did a number on her face." Ross glared down at her. "Your mother isn't too happy about that." Bailey groaned. "For a smart girl, you did a really stupid thing."
"If she hadn't -"
"Bailey, I don't want to hear it."
"This is the problem, Ross! You won't hear me out! There are two sides to every story." she exclaimed, throwing her hands up as they weaved in and out of people.
"You've obviously seen what happened to Joe! If it wasn't for you, he'd be fine!" he replied. "If these boys are going to be at risk with you here, then you need to go."
"Are you kidding me?" Bailey's response was packed with attitude.
"There's no use in talking about it, you're going home and that's final!"
"You don't even know the half of it! Jake -"
"BAILEY, YOU'RE GOING HOME!" he yelled, making the people around them stop to look at them. She bit her tongue, looking up at him, not wanting another tear to fall because of him. He had won, she was going home. "I don't want you contacting anyone in the crew either." he glanced over at her as they approached her gate. "If I find out you're still talking to Joe, or anyone, there will be bigger issues than there are now. You hear me?"
Bailey narrowed her eyes, concentrating on what was going on in front of her. All she wanted to do was scream. Scream and punch the hell of the evil bastard next to her. She had no idea why he was doing this or why he was speaking of the unbelievable, but she felt like she was having a horrible nightmare.
- - - - -
"She was all I ever wanted,
She was all I ever needed and more.
She walked out my door.
And she went away
Left my heart in two.
Left me standing here
Singing all these blues.
And you left without a single word
Not even 'sorry'
I might've hurt worse to hear you say
'I'm leaving, goodbye.'
But your smile still makes my heart sing
Another sad song.
I can't forget it,
Won't regret it.
'Cause I'm still in love with you."
Joe sang sadly into the Miami crowd, Bailey's picture in his mind. He watched as the crowd sung along with him, completely oblivious of to what the lyrics were even about. His nose started to burn, wanting to cry right then, thinking about how he woke up that morning without her. Thinking of the conversation they had the night before, right after they talked to his mom about everything, loving how she was so supportive. How they talked about how much they cared for each other and just loved being around one another. After they had decided to pull through the drama and everything that was going on, she got up and left. He couldn't believe it.
He tried getting a hold of her, millions of times it seemed, but he got nothing. Just her voice on her answering machine. His heart ached every time he dialed her number, hoping, wishing for her to pick up after that 3rd ring. Even after Ross had told him to let her go, he disobeyed his orders and tried anyway. It was no use. It felt as if she was gone forever.
Joe leaned against the front desk in the lobby of the hotel, waiting for the clerk guy to appear after he flicked the little bell. He felt a pair of hands wrap around his waist from behind. He smiled, thinking of Bailey, then grabbed her hands and kissed them.
"Hey, how was-" he turned to see Tori staring up into his eyes. "Ah!" he yelled, then jumped away from her as if she was going to explode like a time bomb. "What is wrong with you?! You were supposed to go with Jake upstairs."
"Sorry, I couldn't help myself." she informed, grinning up at him. He wiped his lips with force as the clerk finally appeared at the desk.
"How may I help you sir? Would you like the Honeymoon Suite?" he asked, looking at Joe, then at Tori.
"Are you serious?" Joe asked in a low voice, staring at the man as if he had 323084 heads. "No, we just need an extra room added onto the 407/409 linked room thing."
"The maximum number of rooms you can have linked are two, sorry sir."
"No, I mean add a single room onto that, like the bill or whatever?" Joe had no idea what he was talking about, his mind was bottled from what Tori had just done. All he wanted was an extra room so she and Jake could be away from everyone.
"Right, right. Sorry." the clerk apologized, then clicked away on his computer, assigning an extra room to their tab.
- - - - -
"Aw, Frankie!" Kevin exclaimed as Frankie looked down at his hot chocolate that was now covering the sidewalk outside of the hotel.
"It was an accident!" he cried. Kevin bent down and tried to clean up the mess a bit.
Bailey chuckled as she stood beside them, casually glancing around; Kevin had the spill covered. Her eyes stopped as she noticed a familiar figure at the front desk inside the hotel lobby. Her mouth dropped as she watched Joe kiss Tori's hands from behind, causing her heart to sink.
"You're kidding me." Bailey barely whispered, staring inside the lobby.
Kevin looked up from the mess on the ground and followed her eyes. He looked just in time to watch Joe yell and jump away from Tori. Bailey entered the lobby just as Joe started talking with the clerk.
"Hey." Bailey said behind Tori. She turned around, looking a bit shocked. "Satisfied?"
Tori smirked. "Well, -" she stopped once Bailey's first made contact with her right cheek. She screamed, then grabbed her face.
"Bailey!" Joe yelled, then quickly made his way in front of her.
"I swear to God if you do one more thing, you'll have something worse than a black eye!" Bailey yelled at Tori who took off towards the elevators. Joe grabbed her shoulders to calm her down a bit, but she shook out of his grasp. "Don't touch me."
Joe's face fell. "What?" he barely got out, staring at her angry face.
"Just don't, Joe." she stared up at him as the burning sensation in her eyes started up again. She shook it off, then walked out of the hotel.
Kevin approached Joe expectantly with Frankie beside him.
- - - - -
Bailey leaned against the concrete wall behind the hotel. She slowly slid down to the ground as the tears began to fall. Her mind raced from Joe, to Tori, and then to Jake and why all of this was happening.
She couldn't understand why things had to be so complicated. She liked Joe and Joe liked her. Why couldn't people just back off? Her mind thought about how things would be if she hadn't been given the job of assisting the boys on tour. She would've never fallen for Joe and she'd never be in the situation she was in now. Bailey thought of how things would be easier on everyone if they weren't together. There wouldn't be as much arguing, yelling, crying. At that point, she felt like giving up. With only a week and a half into this relationship, it was common sense to know to end it sooner than later before she started falling harder and faster for someone who wasn't always going to be there, no matter what promises were made.
Bailey's head rested in her hands as she listened to a pair of footsteps approaching her. Assuming it was Joe, she spoke.
"I can't do this." she muttered, then looked up in shock when Joe wasn't the one standing in front of her. Instantly, she tensed up, staring up into a pair of deep blue eyes.
"I told you." Jake stated, then slowly stepped towards her.
"This is all your fault." she exclaimed, standing up as he came closer.
He smirked, knowing she was right. "You always looked good when you were angry."
She brought her hand up to slap him, but he quickly grabbed it and pinned it against the wall. Shocked my his action, Bailey tried to pull away from him, but she was defenseless as he pinned the rest of her body against the concrete with the weight of his.
"Get off of me!" she yelled, then started to panic, not knowing what he was going to do. "Jake!" she screamed, trying to push him off of her. It was useless, he had her.
"I miss those lips." he said softly, moving in closer to her face. She squirmed under him even more, trying to bring her knee up to his abdomen, but she was locked down. Tears of frustration and fright flowed out of her eyes as he pressed his mouth up against hers. Bailey felt as if she was going to pass out just as Jake was pulled off of her.
She fell to the ground and sobbed a moment before realizing what was happening. She looked up to see Joe on top of Jake, his fist repeatedly making contact with his face. A few more punches and blood made an appearance.
It was like the red was a trigger that set Jake off. Instantly, he flipped Joe over and got a good hit in. "Stop!" she screamed as she got up from the ground, making her way to the boys who were still going at each other.
She reached for Jake, trying to pull him backwards, but one shove from him sent her down to the ground after stumbling over the cracked asphalt. The anger and irritation spiked inside of her. She quickly reproached Jake who was now gripping Joe's bloody shirt and back slapped the side of his face with extreme force, her silver ring sliced his cheek open in the process. He fell backwards off of Joe, his crimson hand covering his cheek.
Joe immediately got up and accompanied Bailey. He grabbed her shoulders, looking down into her teary eyes.
"Are you ok? Did he hurt you?" Even after their rumble, his voice was still soft and caring. Bailey was barely able to nod before she tightly wrapped her arms around his body. She looked down and behind him to see Jake moving.
"Come on." she stated, grabbing Joe's hand and pulling him with her to the front of the building.
The two of them looked horrible. Joe had a little blood dripping from his lip, his left eye was starting to puff up and this shirt was covered in dark red blotches. Bailey didn't look great either. She had a bruise around her wrist, mascara stains down her face and a little bit of blood on her attire as well. They were a mess.
Ignoring the stares and gasps from the people in the hotel lobby, they quickly made their way up to the room in silence, not knowing what to expect. Joe took a deep breath as he opened the door. Kevin laid on the bed watching TV as Nick and Sarah sat on the couch talking.
"Oh my God." Sarah whispered, then rushed over to Bailey and Joe.
"Are you guys alright?!" Kevin exclaimed, rushing up to them as well. Nick stayed seated in shock.
Bailey covered her mouth, then pushed her way to the bathroom and shut the door. Moments later her mouth went sour, causing her to spill her insides out into the toilet. The way she was feeling was over whelming. Her heart was in pain and her mind was in shock. After picturing what had just happened she sobbed again, then spewed a little more out into the bowl.
A soft knock was heard at the door but Bailey didn't bother responding. She couldn't.
"Mom just left with Frankie. Just think what it would've been like if she was here when we walked in." Joe stated, locking the bathroom door behind him. She didn't bother looking up at him. She couldn't bare to see the pain on his face that she caused.
Joe winced as he took a look at his appearance in the mirror. He softly poked as his cheek, then shut his eyes in pain. After a moment, he ran a washcloth under warm water and kneeled down to Bailey. She put her arm up to stop him.
"Joe, stop." she said, grabbing the washcloth from him. She flushed the toilet, closed the lid and motioned him to sit. He was in more pain than she was, physically.
He sat on the closed toilet seat and winced again as the warmth of the cloth came in contact with his forehead. His body was aching and his heart was pounding, but yet the fact that Bailey was there with him kept him in control.
"I had to, Bails." he stated as she wiped the blood from his face. "He shouldn't have touched you. Hell, he shouldn't even be here." he started to tense up.
Bailey leaned in closer to him, holding his chin up as she continued to clean up his face. A singled tear slid down her face as her finger brushed against the cut on his forehead.
"This is all my fault." she barley whispered, pulling away from Joe.
"What?" he asked in disbelief. "How is any of this your fault?"
"How isn't it any of my fault, Joe?" she pulled her hand away from his face, her eyes looking up at the ceiling so the tears wouldn't fall. "None of this would've happened if I had never agreed to take this job in the first place."
"Bailey, stop! Are you hearing yourself right now?" he questioned. "If you never took this job, we would've never met." he looked up into her watery eyes. She nodded her head, then looked away. That action struck Joe's heart. "What are you saying?"
She shrugged her shoulders in frustration, then sat on the side of the bathtub across from him. "If I would've just stayed home, none of this drama would be here. You'd be on tour, having fun and living it up without anything to worry about. With me here, you have all this." she motioned her hands back and forth from him back to her. She could see he was hurt.
"Just stop." This time, she saw the tears forming in his eyes. "Bailey, if you hadn't come on this tour, there are so many things I would've given up on." he took a deep breath. "Girls, for example. I told myself that I wasn't going to fall for anyone, ever again." he grabbed her hand. "Until I met you, it was like the feelings popped out of nowhere, even though I didn't want them to. I'm sorry, but I can't help the way I feel!""
"Joe, it's barely been two weeks."
"Yeah, the best two weeks of my entire life." Bailey shot him a look of disbelief. "Ok, not my entire life, but it's way up there!" he added. "What do I have to do to make you understand that I care about you, Bailey? I just brawled with your psycho ex over you!"
"I know, that's why. . ." she trailed off, looking away.
"That's why what?"
"I don't know." she huffed. "I don't know! It's just, it's not doing anyone any good with me being here!"
"Stop saying that!"
"No Joe, because you know I'm right. What do you think Ross is going to say, or even do, when he finds out about this? If it wasn't for me, everyone would be fine and they're not! Once he finds out, I'm gone."
"Hey, how was-" he turned to see Tori staring up into his eyes. "Ah!" he yelled, then jumped away from her as if she was going to explode like a time bomb. "What is wrong with you?! You were supposed to go with Jake upstairs."
"Sorry, I couldn't help myself." she informed, grinning up at him. He wiped his lips with force as the clerk finally appeared at the desk.
"How may I help you sir? Would you like the Honeymoon Suite?" he asked, looking at Joe, then at Tori.
"Are you serious?" Joe asked in a low voice, staring at the man as if he had 323084 heads. "No, we just need an extra room added onto the 407/409 linked room thing."
"The maximum number of rooms you can have linked are two, sorry sir."
"No, I mean add a single room onto that, like the bill or whatever?" Joe had no idea what he was talking about, his mind was bottled from what Tori had just done. All he wanted was an extra room so she and Jake could be away from everyone.
"Right, right. Sorry." the clerk apologized, then clicked away on his computer, assigning an extra room to their tab.
- - - - -
"Aw, Frankie!" Kevin exclaimed as Frankie looked down at his hot chocolate that was now covering the sidewalk outside of the hotel.
"It was an accident!" he cried. Kevin bent down and tried to clean up the mess a bit.
Bailey chuckled as she stood beside them, casually glancing around; Kevin had the spill covered. Her eyes stopped as she noticed a familiar figure at the front desk inside the hotel lobby. Her mouth dropped as she watched Joe kiss Tori's hands from behind, causing her heart to sink.
"You're kidding me." Bailey barely whispered, staring inside the lobby.
Kevin looked up from the mess on the ground and followed her eyes. He looked just in time to watch Joe yell and jump away from Tori. Bailey entered the lobby just as Joe started talking with the clerk.
"Hey." Bailey said behind Tori. She turned around, looking a bit shocked. "Satisfied?"
Tori smirked. "Well, -" she stopped once Bailey's first made contact with her right cheek. She screamed, then grabbed her face.
"Bailey!" Joe yelled, then quickly made his way in front of her.
"I swear to God if you do one more thing, you'll have something worse than a black eye!" Bailey yelled at Tori who took off towards the elevators. Joe grabbed her shoulders to calm her down a bit, but she shook out of his grasp. "Don't touch me."
Joe's face fell. "What?" he barely got out, staring at her angry face.
"Just don't, Joe." she stared up at him as the burning sensation in her eyes started up again. She shook it off, then walked out of the hotel.
Kevin approached Joe expectantly with Frankie beside him.
- - - - -
Bailey leaned against the concrete wall behind the hotel. She slowly slid down to the ground as the tears began to fall. Her mind raced from Joe, to Tori, and then to Jake and why all of this was happening.
She couldn't understand why things had to be so complicated. She liked Joe and Joe liked her. Why couldn't people just back off? Her mind thought about how things would be if she hadn't been given the job of assisting the boys on tour. She would've never fallen for Joe and she'd never be in the situation she was in now. Bailey thought of how things would be easier on everyone if they weren't together. There wouldn't be as much arguing, yelling, crying. At that point, she felt like giving up. With only a week and a half into this relationship, it was common sense to know to end it sooner than later before she started falling harder and faster for someone who wasn't always going to be there, no matter what promises were made.
Bailey's head rested in her hands as she listened to a pair of footsteps approaching her. Assuming it was Joe, she spoke.
"I can't do this." she muttered, then looked up in shock when Joe wasn't the one standing in front of her. Instantly, she tensed up, staring up into a pair of deep blue eyes.
"I told you." Jake stated, then slowly stepped towards her.
"This is all your fault." she exclaimed, standing up as he came closer.
He smirked, knowing she was right. "You always looked good when you were angry."
She brought her hand up to slap him, but he quickly grabbed it and pinned it against the wall. Shocked my his action, Bailey tried to pull away from him, but she was defenseless as he pinned the rest of her body against the concrete with the weight of his.
"Get off of me!" she yelled, then started to panic, not knowing what he was going to do. "Jake!" she screamed, trying to push him off of her. It was useless, he had her.
"I miss those lips." he said softly, moving in closer to her face. She squirmed under him even more, trying to bring her knee up to his abdomen, but she was locked down. Tears of frustration and fright flowed out of her eyes as he pressed his mouth up against hers. Bailey felt as if she was going to pass out just as Jake was pulled off of her.
She fell to the ground and sobbed a moment before realizing what was happening. She looked up to see Joe on top of Jake, his fist repeatedly making contact with his face. A few more punches and blood made an appearance.
It was like the red was a trigger that set Jake off. Instantly, he flipped Joe over and got a good hit in. "Stop!" she screamed as she got up from the ground, making her way to the boys who were still going at each other.
She reached for Jake, trying to pull him backwards, but one shove from him sent her down to the ground after stumbling over the cracked asphalt. The anger and irritation spiked inside of her. She quickly reproached Jake who was now gripping Joe's bloody shirt and back slapped the side of his face with extreme force, her silver ring sliced his cheek open in the process. He fell backwards off of Joe, his crimson hand covering his cheek.
Joe immediately got up and accompanied Bailey. He grabbed her shoulders, looking down into her teary eyes.
"Are you ok? Did he hurt you?" Even after their rumble, his voice was still soft and caring. Bailey was barely able to nod before she tightly wrapped her arms around his body. She looked down and behind him to see Jake moving.
"Come on." she stated, grabbing Joe's hand and pulling him with her to the front of the building.
The two of them looked horrible. Joe had a little blood dripping from his lip, his left eye was starting to puff up and this shirt was covered in dark red blotches. Bailey didn't look great either. She had a bruise around her wrist, mascara stains down her face and a little bit of blood on her attire as well. They were a mess.
Ignoring the stares and gasps from the people in the hotel lobby, they quickly made their way up to the room in silence, not knowing what to expect. Joe took a deep breath as he opened the door. Kevin laid on the bed watching TV as Nick and Sarah sat on the couch talking.
"Oh my God." Sarah whispered, then rushed over to Bailey and Joe.
"Are you guys alright?!" Kevin exclaimed, rushing up to them as well. Nick stayed seated in shock.
Bailey covered her mouth, then pushed her way to the bathroom and shut the door. Moments later her mouth went sour, causing her to spill her insides out into the toilet. The way she was feeling was over whelming. Her heart was in pain and her mind was in shock. After picturing what had just happened she sobbed again, then spewed a little more out into the bowl.
A soft knock was heard at the door but Bailey didn't bother responding. She couldn't.
"Mom just left with Frankie. Just think what it would've been like if she was here when we walked in." Joe stated, locking the bathroom door behind him. She didn't bother looking up at him. She couldn't bare to see the pain on his face that she caused.
Joe winced as he took a look at his appearance in the mirror. He softly poked as his cheek, then shut his eyes in pain. After a moment, he ran a washcloth under warm water and kneeled down to Bailey. She put her arm up to stop him.
"Joe, stop." she said, grabbing the washcloth from him. She flushed the toilet, closed the lid and motioned him to sit. He was in more pain than she was, physically.
He sat on the closed toilet seat and winced again as the warmth of the cloth came in contact with his forehead. His body was aching and his heart was pounding, but yet the fact that Bailey was there with him kept him in control.
"I had to, Bails." he stated as she wiped the blood from his face. "He shouldn't have touched you. Hell, he shouldn't even be here." he started to tense up.
Bailey leaned in closer to him, holding his chin up as she continued to clean up his face. A singled tear slid down her face as her finger brushed against the cut on his forehead.
"This is all my fault." she barley whispered, pulling away from Joe.
"What?" he asked in disbelief. "How is any of this your fault?"
"How isn't it any of my fault, Joe?" she pulled her hand away from his face, her eyes looking up at the ceiling so the tears wouldn't fall. "None of this would've happened if I had never agreed to take this job in the first place."
"Bailey, stop! Are you hearing yourself right now?" he questioned. "If you never took this job, we would've never met." he looked up into her watery eyes. She nodded her head, then looked away. That action struck Joe's heart. "What are you saying?"
She shrugged her shoulders in frustration, then sat on the side of the bathtub across from him. "If I would've just stayed home, none of this drama would be here. You'd be on tour, having fun and living it up without anything to worry about. With me here, you have all this." she motioned her hands back and forth from him back to her. She could see he was hurt.
"Just stop." This time, she saw the tears forming in his eyes. "Bailey, if you hadn't come on this tour, there are so many things I would've given up on." he took a deep breath. "Girls, for example. I told myself that I wasn't going to fall for anyone, ever again." he grabbed her hand. "Until I met you, it was like the feelings popped out of nowhere, even though I didn't want them to. I'm sorry, but I can't help the way I feel!""
"Joe, it's barely been two weeks."
"Yeah, the best two weeks of my entire life." Bailey shot him a look of disbelief. "Ok, not my entire life, but it's way up there!" he added. "What do I have to do to make you understand that I care about you, Bailey? I just brawled with your psycho ex over you!"
"I know, that's why. . ." she trailed off, looking away.
"That's why what?"
"I don't know." she huffed. "I don't know! It's just, it's not doing anyone any good with me being here!"
"Stop saying that!"
"No Joe, because you know I'm right. What do you think Ross is going to say, or even do, when he finds out about this? If it wasn't for me, everyone would be fine and they're not! Once he finds out, I'm gone."
Joe rolled over in bed the next morning alone. He sat up and glanced around the room to see that everyone was still asleep, except he didn't see Bailey. After noticing that the bathroom door was closed, he made his way over to it and knocked softly.
Seconds later, the doorknob wiggled, then opened. Bailey peaked her head out from around the corner. Joe chuckled. She was sitting Indian style on the sink with her hair straighter plugged in beside her.
"Morning." she said, then continued straightening her hair.
"Morning." he mumbled, still waking up a bit. He closed the bathroom door behind him, then walked over to the toilet. Bailey stared at herself in the mirror as he pulled his pants down and began to pee.
"Joe!" she exclaimed, a little surprise that he just whipped it out in front of her. She wasn't looking at him, but still, she was stunned by the action itself. A tiny smile appeared on his face at her reaction. "It's not polite to pee in front of people. Well, at least ask first." he stood there, smirking, too tired to even reply.
"I need the sink." he stated after pulling his pants up.
"Use the tub." Bailey replied as she straightened the last part of her hair. Moments later, Joe was washing his hands under the faucet. After hearing him sigh, she looked at him through the mirror. Her eyes widened in disbelief as she watched him strip down and step into the shower. Instinctively, she shut her eyes and turned her head, not knowing why Joe was being so open with himself. "Um, Joe?" she said as she heard the shower head turn on. "I'm, uh, gonna go outside. You know, to, uh." she stuttered, sliding off the sink and opening the bathroom door.
Joe stood in the shower as the warm water dripped down his bare body. He smiled in amusement as he shut his eyes, running his fingers through his thick hair. He'd never heard Bailey so choked up before. He was going to speak, but then stopped once he heard the bathroom door close.
- - - - -
"Kids, you ready?" Mrs.Jonas asked as she entered the room. Everyone was already dressed and ready. For what, they had yet to know.
"Where are we going?" Nick asked, standing up from where he was laying on the freshly made bed, courtesy of Bailey.
"Oh, Tori didn't tell you? She's having her friend fly in for the week. She said she already talked to Ross about it and that it'd be fine, but we need to go pick him." she smiled, not knowing that those words made Bailey's stomach curl.
Nick nodded his head, letting his mom know that he heard her. He didn't know what to say as he stared at Bailey's emotionless face. He hoped to God that Tori wasn't that sick of a person to bring her cousin here to Florida, for the week.
"Well, do we all have to go with you to the airport? I mean, it only takes like, 3 people at the most to pick someone up." Joe stated, not believing what Tori was getting herself into.
"You're right." his mom stated. "Joe and Nick, you're coming with me and Tori. Bailey and Kevin, you stay and watch Frankie while your dad is out at that conference thing."
"But -" Joe started, then stopped at his mother's glare. "Fine." he finished, not even wanting to look at Bailey who was sitting next to him on the couch. He knew she wouldn't want him to go, but he also knew that she understood that his mom told him to. This was going to be interesting.
- - - - -
"I don't know about you, but I don't want to have to sit in a stinkin' hotel room all morning." Bailey stated, looking up at the ceiling. Frankie was laying on his stomach, playing his Nintendo DS on the couch as Kevin sat next to her on the bed on his laptop.
"Fine. Let's go somewhere. I mean, she didn't say we had to stay here, she just said to watch that kid, right?" Kevin confirmed.
"Hey! I'm not a kid." Frankie said stubbornly from the other side of the room.
Kevin rolled his eyes with a tiny smile. "Come on, let's just walk around. I think there was a Starbuck's up the street."
- - - - -
"So, uh, who are we picking up?" Nick asked as they entered the airport. He could tell Joe wanted to know, but he wanted to play it as if he wasn't interested, even though his mind raced, thinking of the worst.
"It's a surprise." Tori smirked, making Joe bite his tongue. All he wanted was to have a great week with his family and Bailey, and now Tori was messing things up.
His mind drifted to Bailey as he thought about her the night before in the steamy shower, how he loved it. Her eyes were smoky from her eyeliner and wet strands of hair were sticking to her face. Her cheeks were glowing a bit from the water and the illumination of the light in the tiny bathroom. Then he thought about how she seemed embarrassed when he stripped down with her there. He found it cute. Any other girl would've taken advantage of it, but she was different and she proved herself then.
"Joe?" Nick sounded bit confused and far away. Joe stopped, then looked around him. He had continued walking, lost in his thoughts, as his mom, Nick and Tori stopped at a gate in the airport.
"Oh." he mumbled, a little embarrassed, then turned around and headed over to them.
It wasn't too long before people exited the airplane and made their way up the ramp and some to their families. Nick elbowed Joe as he noticed him fidgeting with his hands, thinking of what he was going to do if his worst nightmare appeared before that ramp.
His heart sank when he saw the built, shaggy blonde haired guy approached Tori with his arms wide open.
"Hey cuz, nice to see you again." Jake smirked.
- - - - -
"Jake's here." Kevin flipped open his cell to find a text from Nick as him, Bailey and Frankie sat at a little table in Starbuck's, a few blocks down from their hotel in Miami.
"I love this thing. What'd I get again?" she asked, a bit confused. "Yummy Frappa-what?"
Kevin closed his phone, then looked at her and chuckled. "Vanilla Bean Frappuccino."
"Mmm." she mumbled, sipping through her straw. "So who was that?" she asked, referring to his phone.
"Probably Rachel." Frankie muttered, not even looking up from the DS in his hands.
"Rachel?" Bailey smirked, looking up at him expectantly.
"Yeah, you know. That character in his little game thing? He gets reality and fantasy mixed up all the time. You know, he lives on that." he rambled, pointing to his little brother.
"Uh-huh, I see." she smiled. "So, where'd you meet her?"
Kevin gave in, knowing that Bailey was the one he could talk to about this kind of stuff. Yeah, Joe was great, but no. And Nick was a bit too young, even though he had some great advice sometimes, but Bailey, she didn't hold back her opinions. She would give you her full overview, and most of the time the right things were said to make anything alright.
"Actually, I met her last night. When you guys crashed to the pool, we kinda ran into each other in the lobby, literally." Bailey laughed as Kevin's facial expression. He completely forgot about his text as he pictured Rachel's face in his mind. "We talked for a few, exchanged numbers, now here we are."
Bailey smiled, she was happy for him. She hoped this 'Rachel' girl would be good for him. He'd been single for so long. . .
"So, what'd she say?" she asked. He looked at her questionably. "The text?"
"Oh, yeah. That." Kevin sighed. "It was Nick." he said simply, hoping his short answer would be enough for her. He knew it wouldn't be.
"What'd he say?"
"He said that they were on their way home." he gave half the truth. Bailey's eyes widened a bit, hoping her thoughts about who Tori was bringing wasn't true. Her heart practically stopped as she flung out her phone and called Joe.
On the 4th ring, he answered.
"Hey!" he sounded a bit too happy. "I miss you." she heard the smile in his voice.
"He's there, isn't he?" she asked bluntly, hoping he'd say no.
"Yeah, we should be back at the hotel in a few. What are you doing?" Joe asked, purposely skipping over her question.
"Joe, stop it!" she rubbed her forehead. "Does your mom know anything about anything?"
"Nope." he replied, noticing that Jake was listening in on him as they drove down the road.
"Is that Bailey? How's Frankie?" she heard Mrs.Jonas ask in the background.
"Yes, he's fine mom." Joe automatically replied.
"Alright, I get the fact that you don't really want to say anything because he's there, but just answer me this; is she completely beaming right now?"
"Very much so." he replied, not even being able to imagine what she's feeling right now.
As much as she wanted to rant and rant about what was on her mind, she said a little goodbye, then hung up to meet Kevin's eyes.
"Am I getting Punk'd or something?" she asked in full seriousness. Kevin tried to stifle a laugh, causing Bailey to smack him on the arm. She couldn't help but laugh herself.
"Don't worry, it'll be fine."
Seconds later, the doorknob wiggled, then opened. Bailey peaked her head out from around the corner. Joe chuckled. She was sitting Indian style on the sink with her hair straighter plugged in beside her.
"Morning." she said, then continued straightening her hair.
"Morning." he mumbled, still waking up a bit. He closed the bathroom door behind him, then walked over to the toilet. Bailey stared at herself in the mirror as he pulled his pants down and began to pee.
"Joe!" she exclaimed, a little surprise that he just whipped it out in front of her. She wasn't looking at him, but still, she was stunned by the action itself. A tiny smile appeared on his face at her reaction. "It's not polite to pee in front of people. Well, at least ask first." he stood there, smirking, too tired to even reply.
"I need the sink." he stated after pulling his pants up.
"Use the tub." Bailey replied as she straightened the last part of her hair. Moments later, Joe was washing his hands under the faucet. After hearing him sigh, she looked at him through the mirror. Her eyes widened in disbelief as she watched him strip down and step into the shower. Instinctively, she shut her eyes and turned her head, not knowing why Joe was being so open with himself. "Um, Joe?" she said as she heard the shower head turn on. "I'm, uh, gonna go outside. You know, to, uh." she stuttered, sliding off the sink and opening the bathroom door.
Joe stood in the shower as the warm water dripped down his bare body. He smiled in amusement as he shut his eyes, running his fingers through his thick hair. He'd never heard Bailey so choked up before. He was going to speak, but then stopped once he heard the bathroom door close.
- - - - -
"Kids, you ready?" Mrs.Jonas asked as she entered the room. Everyone was already dressed and ready. For what, they had yet to know.
"Where are we going?" Nick asked, standing up from where he was laying on the freshly made bed, courtesy of Bailey.
"Oh, Tori didn't tell you? She's having her friend fly in for the week. She said she already talked to Ross about it and that it'd be fine, but we need to go pick him." she smiled, not knowing that those words made Bailey's stomach curl.
Nick nodded his head, letting his mom know that he heard her. He didn't know what to say as he stared at Bailey's emotionless face. He hoped to God that Tori wasn't that sick of a person to bring her cousin here to Florida, for the week.
"Well, do we all have to go with you to the airport? I mean, it only takes like, 3 people at the most to pick someone up." Joe stated, not believing what Tori was getting herself into.
"You're right." his mom stated. "Joe and Nick, you're coming with me and Tori. Bailey and Kevin, you stay and watch Frankie while your dad is out at that conference thing."
"But -" Joe started, then stopped at his mother's glare. "Fine." he finished, not even wanting to look at Bailey who was sitting next to him on the couch. He knew she wouldn't want him to go, but he also knew that she understood that his mom told him to. This was going to be interesting.
- - - - -
"I don't know about you, but I don't want to have to sit in a stinkin' hotel room all morning." Bailey stated, looking up at the ceiling. Frankie was laying on his stomach, playing his Nintendo DS on the couch as Kevin sat next to her on the bed on his laptop.
"Fine. Let's go somewhere. I mean, she didn't say we had to stay here, she just said to watch that kid, right?" Kevin confirmed.
"Hey! I'm not a kid." Frankie said stubbornly from the other side of the room.
Kevin rolled his eyes with a tiny smile. "Come on, let's just walk around. I think there was a Starbuck's up the street."
- - - - -
"So, uh, who are we picking up?" Nick asked as they entered the airport. He could tell Joe wanted to know, but he wanted to play it as if he wasn't interested, even though his mind raced, thinking of the worst.
"It's a surprise." Tori smirked, making Joe bite his tongue. All he wanted was to have a great week with his family and Bailey, and now Tori was messing things up.
His mind drifted to Bailey as he thought about her the night before in the steamy shower, how he loved it. Her eyes were smoky from her eyeliner and wet strands of hair were sticking to her face. Her cheeks were glowing a bit from the water and the illumination of the light in the tiny bathroom. Then he thought about how she seemed embarrassed when he stripped down with her there. He found it cute. Any other girl would've taken advantage of it, but she was different and she proved herself then.
"Joe?" Nick sounded bit confused and far away. Joe stopped, then looked around him. He had continued walking, lost in his thoughts, as his mom, Nick and Tori stopped at a gate in the airport.
"Oh." he mumbled, a little embarrassed, then turned around and headed over to them.
It wasn't too long before people exited the airplane and made their way up the ramp and some to their families. Nick elbowed Joe as he noticed him fidgeting with his hands, thinking of what he was going to do if his worst nightmare appeared before that ramp.
His heart sank when he saw the built, shaggy blonde haired guy approached Tori with his arms wide open.
"Hey cuz, nice to see you again." Jake smirked.
- - - - -
"Jake's here." Kevin flipped open his cell to find a text from Nick as him, Bailey and Frankie sat at a little table in Starbuck's, a few blocks down from their hotel in Miami.
"I love this thing. What'd I get again?" she asked, a bit confused. "Yummy Frappa-what?"
Kevin closed his phone, then looked at her and chuckled. "Vanilla Bean Frappuccino."
"Mmm." she mumbled, sipping through her straw. "So who was that?" she asked, referring to his phone.
"Probably Rachel." Frankie muttered, not even looking up from the DS in his hands.
"Rachel?" Bailey smirked, looking up at him expectantly.
"Yeah, you know. That character in his little game thing? He gets reality and fantasy mixed up all the time. You know, he lives on that." he rambled, pointing to his little brother.
"Uh-huh, I see." she smiled. "So, where'd you meet her?"
Kevin gave in, knowing that Bailey was the one he could talk to about this kind of stuff. Yeah, Joe was great, but no. And Nick was a bit too young, even though he had some great advice sometimes, but Bailey, she didn't hold back her opinions. She would give you her full overview, and most of the time the right things were said to make anything alright.
"Actually, I met her last night. When you guys crashed to the pool, we kinda ran into each other in the lobby, literally." Bailey laughed as Kevin's facial expression. He completely forgot about his text as he pictured Rachel's face in his mind. "We talked for a few, exchanged numbers, now here we are."
Bailey smiled, she was happy for him. She hoped this 'Rachel' girl would be good for him. He'd been single for so long. . .
"So, what'd she say?" she asked. He looked at her questionably. "The text?"
"Oh, yeah. That." Kevin sighed. "It was Nick." he said simply, hoping his short answer would be enough for her. He knew it wouldn't be.
"What'd he say?"
"He said that they were on their way home." he gave half the truth. Bailey's eyes widened a bit, hoping her thoughts about who Tori was bringing wasn't true. Her heart practically stopped as she flung out her phone and called Joe.
On the 4th ring, he answered.
"Hey!" he sounded a bit too happy. "I miss you." she heard the smile in his voice.
"He's there, isn't he?" she asked bluntly, hoping he'd say no.
"Yeah, we should be back at the hotel in a few. What are you doing?" Joe asked, purposely skipping over her question.
"Joe, stop it!" she rubbed her forehead. "Does your mom know anything about anything?"
"Nope." he replied, noticing that Jake was listening in on him as they drove down the road.
"Is that Bailey? How's Frankie?" she heard Mrs.Jonas ask in the background.
"Yes, he's fine mom." Joe automatically replied.
"Alright, I get the fact that you don't really want to say anything because he's there, but just answer me this; is she completely beaming right now?"
"Very much so." he replied, not even being able to imagine what she's feeling right now.
As much as she wanted to rant and rant about what was on her mind, she said a little goodbye, then hung up to meet Kevin's eyes.
"Am I getting Punk'd or something?" she asked in full seriousness. Kevin tried to stifle a laugh, causing Bailey to smack him on the arm. She couldn't help but laugh herself.
"Don't worry, it'll be fine."
Bailey stomped through the lobby only wearing her bikini. After watching the people stare in amusement, she stormed out of the hotel and to her bus. She smacked the door of her tour bus after remembering that her and Sarah had locked it earlier. She then made her way on to the JB bus.
It was pitch black inside, but Bailey didn't bother turning on a light. She just slammed herself down on to the couch, bringing her knees up to her chest. She tried to piece together what had just happened.
-Tori, from Atlanta, Georgia, [which happens to be Jake's hometown] on tour with her after the big blow up with him. Ok, that seems possible. Who'd make an assumption from that? Lots of people live in Georgia.
-The weird dreams with Joe and Tori hooking up, that's just jealousy chiming in. That's normal.
-Frankie over-hearing someone saying something about 'Jake' and 'fucktard.' Yeah, that's a believable statement. -But why make a connection to her Jake?
-Dialing her ex's number on Tori's phone and ironically having the name 'Jake' pop up? Ok, I think it's time to get suspicious.
There was a knock on the door, making Bailey look towards the front of the bus. She had closed and locked it after she came in.
"Bails, open up!" it was Joe. She ignored him and rested her forehead on her knees. Even though the situation was about Tori and Jake and what was going on between them, Joe still plucked a nerve of hers. When she watched him and Tori in the pool, he hadn't moved when she approached him. She couldn't help but wonder why. Right now, she just wanted time alone to think. "Bailey!" he called out through the glass again. She stayed put.
She heard him hit the door one last time, then it was quiet. After a moment, she felt the bus shift a bit. Her heard shot up and stared into the darkness as the bus shifted again. Seconds later there was a clunk on the roof of the bus. She stared up at the sunroof in the center of the back room as Joe's head peeked over.
"Let me in!" he said, looking down at her. He could barely make out her face with the little moon light that was showing through the window. Bailey stared up at him and shook her head. "Come on." he muttered to himself as she stayed still on the couch. "Bailey, let's talk about this."
"Talk about what, Joe? The fact that I have a psycho ex-boyfriend or the fact that you would've let Tori make a move on you?" she stood up from the couch, yelling at him through the closed sunroof.
"Just let me in! Arguing between this friggin' glass isn't making the situation any better." he yelled back.
Bailey rolled her eyes, then exited the bus, not waiting up for Joe as she walked behind the bus and sat on the curb by a bush. It was a few moments before Joe was off the roof of the bus and sitting next to her.
"I don't want to talk -" Bailey started, but Joe cut her off.
"I don't care if you don't want to talk about it, we're talking about it!" he exclaimed. "Now look, I don't know what's really going on, but you have no reason to be pissed at me."
"Are you serious?" Bailey stood up from the curb, looking down at him. "I have no reason to be pissed at you? What in the world were you and Tori doing in the pool? Sorry, but I thought playing Marco Polo involved having your eyes shut."
"Nothing happened!"
"Yet. -What, were you going to see if she actually would kiss you before pushing her away? Come on Joe, I know you're smarter than that." she snapped, staring down at him. He let his tense shoulders fall as he stared back into her eyes for a few quiet moments.
"Are you done yelling at me?" he asked, showing no emotion. It stung Bailey a little bit to hear that. Instantly, she felt bad.
"I'm not purposely yelling at you... I'm just really pissed off right now and everything I say just comes out loudly." she lowered her voice a bit.
"About in the pool, you're right. I wanted to see if she would actually do it." he stood up from the curb, looking down into her eyes. "Only to have a reason not to be around her." He paused as her eyes shimmered. "What do I have to do to convince you that I'm into you, and only you?"
Bailey didn't reply, she just looked away from him, shrugging her shoulders.
"You think this is what Jake wanted, for us to argue like this?" she finally spoke
"If so, that guy must be really hooked on you. Obsessed, even." He replied as her eyes finally connected with his again. "I could see why." He finished softly, then traced his finger along her jaw line. "I think he's going to have to try a little harder."
Bailey smiled, placed her hands over his, then brought it down to her lips and kissed it softly.
"I think we should get back. They're probably wondering – " Bailey was cut off by Joe's lips. He kissed her long and deep right there in the dark parking lot. His hands went to her bare hips as hers made their way behind his neck. Pulling her against his body, Joe slowly slid his tongue into her mouth, causing her to smile. She ran her fingers through his hair as she pressed herself harder against him.
After a few minutes, the kisses became softer and lighter as they reluctantly pulled away from each other.
"We should get back." Bailey whispered with her eyes still closed. She went in and kissed him again.
"Mhm." Joe mumbled, still kissing her.
"Yeah." She got out a few kisses later, then started stepping backwards to the hotel. "C'mon."
- - - - -
"I knew you looked familiar." Sarah stated, walking with Tori back to the hotel room. "Jake's family reunion, 5 years ago. You were the kid with the big glasses and poofy hair that got thrown into the pool." She laughed as Tori glared over at her. "Why would you do this?" Tori shrugged her shoulders as they entered the elevator. "Look, I don't know if you're here for the job, or just to mess with Bailey and Joe, but you're going to stop whatever it is that you're trying to pull, got it?"
All Tori did was look over at her. "Whatever you say." She smirked, then stepped out of the elevator once it reached the forth floor.
"You say that as if you think I'm joking." Sarah snapped, then grabbed her shoulder and spun her around to get her full attention. "If you mess up anything else, you'll regret ever stepping on that tour bus."
"Ha ha." Tori chuckled. "What are you doing to do, smack me? Ross would have you on a plane home in a second."
Sarah smiled. "I'm sure that's what would happen." Her voice was flooded with sarcasm. "Just watch yourself. Everyone is going to be eyeing you now."
"Back so soon?" Kevin questioned as Sarah followed Tori into the room. She closed the door, made her hand into a 'gun', then acted like she shot Tori in the back. Nick tried to stifle a laugh, causing Tori to spin around and see Sarah smiling. She narrowed her eyes at her before grabbing her clothes and going into the bathroom.
"Wanna know who that chick really is?" Sarah asked quietly, sitting down next to Kevin who was sitting up with the laptop in his lap. He and Nick looked at her attentively. "Jake's cousin. Ironic, huh?"
"Are you serious?" Nick asked, really surprised by her statement.
Sarah nodded, "Just keep an eye out, alright?" they nodded as the door opened again. Bailey and Joe walked in hand in hand in their bathing suits. Everyone looked at them expectantly.
"What?" Bailey asked, trying her best not to smile. Her lips were tingling like crazy, it felt like everyone could tell. She searched their faces, then realized one was missing. "Bathroom?" she asked, Sarah nodded. "Where's her phone?" Bailey smirked. Kevin then pointed to the dresser by the bathroom door. "Sweet."
"Uh, what are you doing?" Joe asked as she grabbed Tori's cell, tossed it at Sarah, then approached Joe.
"Take a picture, would you?" Bailey asked, smiling widely at Sarah. She flipped open the phone and aimed it at her and Joe. Bailey looked up into his eyes as the gap between their faces decreased. Joe smirked; he knew exactly what she was doing.
He cupped her chin as their lips touched. She grabbed his chest and pulled herself closer to him as Sarah snapped the picture.
"Alright, got it." she grinned, looking up at them. They were still attached.
"Ok, she got it!" Nick repeated, a little disgusted.
Bailey pulled away and grabbed the phone from Sarah. 'How's this? Asshole.' she texted into the phone, then sent it to Jake. She placed the phone back on the desk as the bathroom door opened. Bailey smiled, grabbed her bag beside the door, then entered the bathroom herself. She shut the door behind her, leaned against it, then shut her eyes. She felt great.
Once the stepped back into reality, she slipped off her bathing suit and hopped in the shower. Within moments, the bathroom was steamy as the warm water ran down her body. A few minutes passed and there was a knock at the door.
"Come in." Bailey stuck her head out behind the curtain, awaiting to see who was entering the bathroom.
"I have to pee." Joe blushed, then closed and locked the door behind him. Bailey smiled, then closed the curtain and started shampooing her hair, thinking of Joe.
Seconds later, she heard him tinkling. Bailey squeezed her eyes shut, then giggled.
"I love how you find that funny." she heard a smirk in Joe's voice, then regretted making a sound as he flushed the toilet. A moment later, the warm water tickling down her body turned ice cold.
"Not cool, Joseph!" she squeaked, then poked her head out of the curtain to glare at him.
He smiled as he looked at her wet face through the fog that had formed between them. She stuck her tongue at him before shutting the curtain again.
"You're so mature." he stated, hopping up onto the sink.
Bailey laughed, "Like you have any room to talk."
Joe didn't reply, he was too busy writing his name on the clouded mirror. Under it, he made a heart, then wrote Bailey's name. He smiled to himself again as he thought about the water dripping down her --- .
His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the water in the shower click off. He watched as the towel that was hanging over the curtain disappeared, then opened to reveal Bailey dripping wet with the towel wrapped around her body. She noticed the mirror, then smiled at him.
"You're too sweet." she smiled, then went up to him and kissed his cheek. "-But now you have to go so I can get dressed." he did just as she said, as if he was under some sort of spell, and left without a word.
"Joseph!" his mother hissed. "What in the world were you doing in there?!"
Joe's eyes shot up to find the voice. His mother was standing in the doorway of the linked rooms. "I had to pee!" he exclaimed, a little embarrassed.
"For 15 minutes?" Tori smirked, he narrowed his eyes at her.
"I was constipated." he lied, Kevin and Nick cracked up. "Shut up, I think it was that spaghetti at dinner." he lied again. How he hated it, but he didn't want his mother to have the wrong impression on Bailey. He was the one who went in there himself.
"Alright sweetie." she smiled. "Boys in one bed, girls in the other. And, uh," she trailed off, realizing that 3 people couldn't fit in the same bed. "Two of you are going to have to crash on the pull out couch." she said, looking at Joe. "You guys better not pull anything." she eyed each person in the room, but stayed on Joe the longest.
"Mom!" he exclaimed in disbelief. She pointed at him, then went back into her room and shut the door.
"Yeah, Joseph." Kevin smirked.
"What'd he do now?" Bailey asked as she walked out of the steamy bathroom, drying her long hair on a towel. She was wearing one of Joe's shirts that she stole and a pair of little PJ shorts.
"His mom basically said you're easy." Tori stated, then slid under the blanket on one of the beds.
"Really? I think I heard someone say that I'm going to knock your face in." Bailey gritted her teeth, then motioned her body in her direction.
"HEY! Stop." Kevin exclaimed, putting his hands in the air. "Tori, really, you've done enough. How 'bout you shut up before she actually makes you?"
"Kids, kids! Just go to bed." Nick said, then curled under the blanket next to Kevin.
Nothing else was said as Joe unfolded the bed from the couch. Within seconds, the bed was made with pillows and everything. Bailey slid in on one side, Joe on the other. After the lights clicked off, the room went silent
It was pitch black inside, but Bailey didn't bother turning on a light. She just slammed herself down on to the couch, bringing her knees up to her chest. She tried to piece together what had just happened.
-Tori, from Atlanta, Georgia, [which happens to be Jake's hometown] on tour with her after the big blow up with him. Ok, that seems possible. Who'd make an assumption from that? Lots of people live in Georgia.
-The weird dreams with Joe and Tori hooking up, that's just jealousy chiming in. That's normal.
-Frankie over-hearing someone saying something about 'Jake' and 'fucktard.' Yeah, that's a believable statement. -But why make a connection to her Jake?
-Dialing her ex's number on Tori's phone and ironically having the name 'Jake' pop up? Ok, I think it's time to get suspicious.
There was a knock on the door, making Bailey look towards the front of the bus. She had closed and locked it after she came in.
"Bails, open up!" it was Joe. She ignored him and rested her forehead on her knees. Even though the situation was about Tori and Jake and what was going on between them, Joe still plucked a nerve of hers. When she watched him and Tori in the pool, he hadn't moved when she approached him. She couldn't help but wonder why. Right now, she just wanted time alone to think. "Bailey!" he called out through the glass again. She stayed put.
She heard him hit the door one last time, then it was quiet. After a moment, she felt the bus shift a bit. Her heard shot up and stared into the darkness as the bus shifted again. Seconds later there was a clunk on the roof of the bus. She stared up at the sunroof in the center of the back room as Joe's head peeked over.
"Let me in!" he said, looking down at her. He could barely make out her face with the little moon light that was showing through the window. Bailey stared up at him and shook her head. "Come on." he muttered to himself as she stayed still on the couch. "Bailey, let's talk about this."
"Talk about what, Joe? The fact that I have a psycho ex-boyfriend or the fact that you would've let Tori make a move on you?" she stood up from the couch, yelling at him through the closed sunroof.
"Just let me in! Arguing between this friggin' glass isn't making the situation any better." he yelled back.
Bailey rolled her eyes, then exited the bus, not waiting up for Joe as she walked behind the bus and sat on the curb by a bush. It was a few moments before Joe was off the roof of the bus and sitting next to her.
"I don't want to talk -" Bailey started, but Joe cut her off.
"I don't care if you don't want to talk about it, we're talking about it!" he exclaimed. "Now look, I don't know what's really going on, but you have no reason to be pissed at me."
"Are you serious?" Bailey stood up from the curb, looking down at him. "I have no reason to be pissed at you? What in the world were you and Tori doing in the pool? Sorry, but I thought playing Marco Polo involved having your eyes shut."
"Nothing happened!"
"Yet. -What, were you going to see if she actually would kiss you before pushing her away? Come on Joe, I know you're smarter than that." she snapped, staring down at him. He let his tense shoulders fall as he stared back into her eyes for a few quiet moments.
"Are you done yelling at me?" he asked, showing no emotion. It stung Bailey a little bit to hear that. Instantly, she felt bad.
"I'm not purposely yelling at you... I'm just really pissed off right now and everything I say just comes out loudly." she lowered her voice a bit.
"About in the pool, you're right. I wanted to see if she would actually do it." he stood up from the curb, looking down into her eyes. "Only to have a reason not to be around her." He paused as her eyes shimmered. "What do I have to do to convince you that I'm into you, and only you?"
Bailey didn't reply, she just looked away from him, shrugging her shoulders.
"You think this is what Jake wanted, for us to argue like this?" she finally spoke
"If so, that guy must be really hooked on you. Obsessed, even." He replied as her eyes finally connected with his again. "I could see why." He finished softly, then traced his finger along her jaw line. "I think he's going to have to try a little harder."
Bailey smiled, placed her hands over his, then brought it down to her lips and kissed it softly.
"I think we should get back. They're probably wondering – " Bailey was cut off by Joe's lips. He kissed her long and deep right there in the dark parking lot. His hands went to her bare hips as hers made their way behind his neck. Pulling her against his body, Joe slowly slid his tongue into her mouth, causing her to smile. She ran her fingers through his hair as she pressed herself harder against him.
After a few minutes, the kisses became softer and lighter as they reluctantly pulled away from each other.
"We should get back." Bailey whispered with her eyes still closed. She went in and kissed him again.
"Mhm." Joe mumbled, still kissing her.
"Yeah." She got out a few kisses later, then started stepping backwards to the hotel. "C'mon."
- - - - -
"I knew you looked familiar." Sarah stated, walking with Tori back to the hotel room. "Jake's family reunion, 5 years ago. You were the kid with the big glasses and poofy hair that got thrown into the pool." She laughed as Tori glared over at her. "Why would you do this?" Tori shrugged her shoulders as they entered the elevator. "Look, I don't know if you're here for the job, or just to mess with Bailey and Joe, but you're going to stop whatever it is that you're trying to pull, got it?"
All Tori did was look over at her. "Whatever you say." She smirked, then stepped out of the elevator once it reached the forth floor.
"You say that as if you think I'm joking." Sarah snapped, then grabbed her shoulder and spun her around to get her full attention. "If you mess up anything else, you'll regret ever stepping on that tour bus."
"Ha ha." Tori chuckled. "What are you doing to do, smack me? Ross would have you on a plane home in a second."
Sarah smiled. "I'm sure that's what would happen." Her voice was flooded with sarcasm. "Just watch yourself. Everyone is going to be eyeing you now."
"Back so soon?" Kevin questioned as Sarah followed Tori into the room. She closed the door, made her hand into a 'gun', then acted like she shot Tori in the back. Nick tried to stifle a laugh, causing Tori to spin around and see Sarah smiling. She narrowed her eyes at her before grabbing her clothes and going into the bathroom.
"Wanna know who that chick really is?" Sarah asked quietly, sitting down next to Kevin who was sitting up with the laptop in his lap. He and Nick looked at her attentively. "Jake's cousin. Ironic, huh?"
"Are you serious?" Nick asked, really surprised by her statement.
Sarah nodded, "Just keep an eye out, alright?" they nodded as the door opened again. Bailey and Joe walked in hand in hand in their bathing suits. Everyone looked at them expectantly.
"What?" Bailey asked, trying her best not to smile. Her lips were tingling like crazy, it felt like everyone could tell. She searched their faces, then realized one was missing. "Bathroom?" she asked, Sarah nodded. "Where's her phone?" Bailey smirked. Kevin then pointed to the dresser by the bathroom door. "Sweet."
"Uh, what are you doing?" Joe asked as she grabbed Tori's cell, tossed it at Sarah, then approached Joe.
"Take a picture, would you?" Bailey asked, smiling widely at Sarah. She flipped open the phone and aimed it at her and Joe. Bailey looked up into his eyes as the gap between their faces decreased. Joe smirked; he knew exactly what she was doing.
He cupped her chin as their lips touched. She grabbed his chest and pulled herself closer to him as Sarah snapped the picture.
"Alright, got it." she grinned, looking up at them. They were still attached.
"Ok, she got it!" Nick repeated, a little disgusted.
Bailey pulled away and grabbed the phone from Sarah. 'How's this? Asshole.' she texted into the phone, then sent it to Jake. She placed the phone back on the desk as the bathroom door opened. Bailey smiled, grabbed her bag beside the door, then entered the bathroom herself. She shut the door behind her, leaned against it, then shut her eyes. She felt great.
Once the stepped back into reality, she slipped off her bathing suit and hopped in the shower. Within moments, the bathroom was steamy as the warm water ran down her body. A few minutes passed and there was a knock at the door.
"Come in." Bailey stuck her head out behind the curtain, awaiting to see who was entering the bathroom.
"I have to pee." Joe blushed, then closed and locked the door behind him. Bailey smiled, then closed the curtain and started shampooing her hair, thinking of Joe.
Seconds later, she heard him tinkling. Bailey squeezed her eyes shut, then giggled.
"I love how you find that funny." she heard a smirk in Joe's voice, then regretted making a sound as he flushed the toilet. A moment later, the warm water tickling down her body turned ice cold.
"Not cool, Joseph!" she squeaked, then poked her head out of the curtain to glare at him.
He smiled as he looked at her wet face through the fog that had formed between them. She stuck her tongue at him before shutting the curtain again.
"You're so mature." he stated, hopping up onto the sink.
Bailey laughed, "Like you have any room to talk."
Joe didn't reply, he was too busy writing his name on the clouded mirror. Under it, he made a heart, then wrote Bailey's name. He smiled to himself again as he thought about the water dripping down her --- .
His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the water in the shower click off. He watched as the towel that was hanging over the curtain disappeared, then opened to reveal Bailey dripping wet with the towel wrapped around her body. She noticed the mirror, then smiled at him.
"You're too sweet." she smiled, then went up to him and kissed his cheek. "-But now you have to go so I can get dressed." he did just as she said, as if he was under some sort of spell, and left without a word.
"Joseph!" his mother hissed. "What in the world were you doing in there?!"
Joe's eyes shot up to find the voice. His mother was standing in the doorway of the linked rooms. "I had to pee!" he exclaimed, a little embarrassed.
"For 15 minutes?" Tori smirked, he narrowed his eyes at her.
"I was constipated." he lied, Kevin and Nick cracked up. "Shut up, I think it was that spaghetti at dinner." he lied again. How he hated it, but he didn't want his mother to have the wrong impression on Bailey. He was the one who went in there himself.
"Alright sweetie." she smiled. "Boys in one bed, girls in the other. And, uh," she trailed off, realizing that 3 people couldn't fit in the same bed. "Two of you are going to have to crash on the pull out couch." she said, looking at Joe. "You guys better not pull anything." she eyed each person in the room, but stayed on Joe the longest.
"Mom!" he exclaimed in disbelief. She pointed at him, then went back into her room and shut the door.
"Yeah, Joseph." Kevin smirked.
"What'd he do now?" Bailey asked as she walked out of the steamy bathroom, drying her long hair on a towel. She was wearing one of Joe's shirts that she stole and a pair of little PJ shorts.
"His mom basically said you're easy." Tori stated, then slid under the blanket on one of the beds.
"Really? I think I heard someone say that I'm going to knock your face in." Bailey gritted her teeth, then motioned her body in her direction.
"HEY! Stop." Kevin exclaimed, putting his hands in the air. "Tori, really, you've done enough. How 'bout you shut up before she actually makes you?"
"Kids, kids! Just go to bed." Nick said, then curled under the blanket next to Kevin.
Nothing else was said as Joe unfolded the bed from the couch. Within seconds, the bed was made with pillows and everything. Bailey slid in on one side, Joe on the other. After the lights clicked off, the room went silent
Joe kissed Bailey's hand as the elevator doors shut. She smiled up at him, making his stomach do a flip flop. No one noticed Tori rolling her eyes in the corner.
A soft 'ding' was heard, then the doors opened on the 4th floor of the hotel. Instantly, Bailey's heart rate picked up as she squeezed Joe's hand.
"Alright, room 407." Kevin said, then knocked on the door. They 6 of them huddled around the door as it began to open.
"Aw, my babies!" Mrs.Jonas cried, then grabbed Kevin, who was closest to her, and hugged him. "How are you guys?!" she asked, overly excited as she went around the circle, hugging everyone. Bailey tensed up when it was her turn, but she was fine. "Come in, come in. I want to meet everyone." with that, she turned back into the hotel room. Everyone followed her in.
"See, it wasn't that bad." Joe whispered, his lips softly moved on Bailey's ear, awakening the butterflies in her stomach.
"Thanks for that." she groaned, making her even more nervous. He shot her a look that screamed 'What'd I do?', but she shook her head as she followed Sarah into the room.
"Ok mom, this is Sarah and Tori." Joe introduced, pointing to them. "-And I think you might know Nick and Kevin there." he dragged along, trying not to crack up at Bailey's expressionless face. "-And this is my girlfriend Bailey." Bailey glanced at him when he said 'girlfriend', then smiled.
"Oh sweetie, it's so nice to finally meet you." his mom gave her another hug. Bailey looked at Joe as if to say, 'You already told her about me?' He nodded, then blushed a little. "Gosh, you're a gorgeous one." she said, pulling away and grabbing her chin. Bailey couldn't help but smile the entire time. Mrs.Jonas then snapped her hand way, "Oh yeah, you're father is out with Frankie picking up a few things. He should be back soon." she turned to Kevin, Nick and Joe. They all nodded in acknowledgement. "Alright kids, I have to go get ready. We're heading out for dinner soon. I'll be in the other room." she informed, before exiting through the door in the center of the room. The two rooms were joined together.
"So, what do you guys want to do?" Sarah asked as Bailey dove onto the bed. She buried her face down into the blanket, waiting for someone else to reply. She was to eager to lay on the comfy bed to bother responding herself. She wanted to give her messed up stomach a little rest.
"Well, I have to go make a phone call. I'll be back." Tori stated, then made her way to the door. "I won't be long." she smiled, Kevin waved before she was gone. Tori made her way down the hall and around the corner, slipping out her cell phone in the process. She held in the 2, then waited at the phone began to ring.
"What's going on?" a guy's voice asked on the other line.
"Can't catch me, dad!" Frankie teased as he ran onto the elevator in the lobby. Mr.Jonas ran, but he didn't make it in time. The doors shut and Frankie was on his way up. After the 'ding', he jetted out and down the hall. He passed room '413' before he spotted a vending machine before the corner of the hallway. His eyes practically bulged out of his head as he looked up at the junk food in front of him. He pressed his face against the glass, looking at his reflection in a 'Three Musketeers' bar when he heard a girl talking.
"Jake, you fucktard, you're not listening to me!" he heard her say. Frankie pulled away from the glass and looked around for the voice. "I almost had him, alright? Chill. I just need a few more days."
"Frankie!" Mr.Jonas yelled down the hallway. He spun around to see his dad stomping after him. After gulping, he heard the girl finish up.
"Gotta go." she muffled into the phone before slipping it back into her pocket.
Frankie kept his eyes on the ground as he walked back. "Sorry Daddy." he mumbled.
"It's alright. I think you're brothers are here." he replied, sliding the keycard into the door. A second later, Frankie squealed as he rushed into the room.
"Joe!" he shrieked, tackling him onto the bed next to Bailey who was now on her back, propping herself up with her elbows.
"Hey kid! Missed me?" Joe replied, tickling his sides. Frankie giggled, then made his was around to Kevin and Nick.
Joe introduced Bailey and Sarah to his dad as Tori entered the room with a smile.
"Nice to meet you Mr.Jonas." Tori shook his hand after the others. Frankie's head popped up at the sound of her voice. He knew it sounded familiar, but shrugged it off.
After Mr.Jonas was greeted, he made his way into the other room.
"You guys are boring." Frankie complained, crossing his arms. "Do something." Everyone looked at each other and laughed.
"Um, what do you want to do?" Bailey asked him.
"Play my Nintendo DS." he replied simply. "-But I left it in the car." he pouted.
"Well, we could go down and get it for you." Joe offered, Frankie nodded before Joe got up and went into the other room. Moments later, he returned with a set of car keys. He waved for Bailey to come with him.
"I wanna come!" Frankie exclaimed.
"Alright, alright. Come on." Joe replied, then shook his head at Sarah who was watching with a smile in amusement. With that, he followed Bailey and Frankie out the door.
Instantly, Frankie bolted to the elevator as Joe and Bailey trailed slowly behind.
"So, you feeling better?" he looked over at her, she nodded. "I told you it wouldn't be bad." She smiled as she replayed the moment in her mind. 'This is my girlfriend, Bailey.' Ah, she loved it.
"C'mon fucktards." he yelled from the elevator causing Bailey to gasp.
"Frankie!" Joe exclaimed, rushing up to him. Bailey was right behind him. "Don't ever say that word! It's bad."
"Sorry." he looked down.
"Where'd you hear that?" Joe asked. He was now squatting down next to his brother, looking him in the eyes. Bailey watched the interaction between the two.
"At the candy box." he replied, Joe looked confused.
"A vending machine?" Bailey asked, he nodded.
"Did it like, talk to you? What'd it'd say?" Joe tried to get him to open up, knowing the machine actually didn't talk.
"I was looking at the chocolate bars, and then I just heard, 'Jake, you, uh, the bad word.'" Frankie cautiously repeated. Instantly, a chill ran down Bailey's spine at the sound of his name.
Just then, the 'ding' was heard and they exited the elevator and made their way through the lobby and outside.
"What else was said?" Joe poked at him even more as they made their way to the white, 2005 rental Impala parked a few yards from the tour busses.
"I don't know. Something about almost having someone or something in a few days. I don't know." he stammered as the eagerness inside of him grew. All he wanted was his DS.
"-And when was this?" Bailey asked.
"Like, before I met you." he replied quickly as Joe unlocked the car. Frankie hopped in, grabbed his DS, then was back at Bailey's side. "Ok, we can go now." he grinned. Joe shook his head and locked the car.
"What do you think that was all about?" Joe asked Bailey as they made their way back onto the elevator. She shrugged her shoulders, she didn't really want to think about it. The last thing she wanted to do was make conclusions from a 6-year-old.
"You think it was Tori?" she asked, then bit her tongue after she realized she said it out loud. "No, never mind." she quickly added. "I didn't mean to -"
"Actually, that's what I was thinking." he trailed off. "- But what are the chances?"
- - - - -
The group of 9 ended up going to Macaroni Grill for dinner. After a whole lot of laughter and full stomachs, they were headed back to the hotel.
"You guys wanna hit up the pool?" Joe asked as they got out of the car.
"Sure." Tori and Bailey replied at the same time, catching Sarah's attention. She could easily read her best friend's eyes; something was going on in her mind.
"I have to call up my mom, see how she's doing." Bailey smiled. "You guys go ahead, I'll meet up with you."
"My suit is on the bus." Joe stated, then started off towards the bus. "Guys, you want me to grab yours?" he asked Kevin and Nick. They shook their heads.
"Na, I think I'm gonna just to back to the room and lay down." Kevin stated, Nick agreed.
"I'll come." Tori offered, looking at Joe. He wasn't a mean person, so he didn't object, but he did give Bailey a look of apology before walking with Tori to the busses.
Sarah stared at Bailey in the darkness of the parking lot. It was going on 10pm and the crickets were heard through the thick air.
"I don't want to talk about it." Bailey stopped Sarah before she even begun, putting her hand up as she called her mom.
After about 10 minutes of reassuring her mother that everything was going good, her and Sarah headed to the busses themselves to get their suits. Joe and Tori had already left.
"I told you I didn't like her." Sarah stated as then headed back into the hotel. Bailey glanced over at her.
"And you're restating that because. . ."
"-Because I'm not stupid and I can see it in your eyes." she replied.
"Whatever." Bailey said, she'd inform her later of what was going on. The two of them were in and out of the hotel room within minutes with their suits on, heading back downstairs to the pool.
The two approached the glass door to the pool room when they saw Joe and Tori. Joe's back was to them as he leaned against the wall of the pool, his arms stretched out on the edge. Bailey stopped Sarah from opening the door as she watched Tori swim towards him, a mischievous smile playing on her face.
Immediately, Bailey's anger inside of her rose. She knew Joe wouldn't do anything, but she was disgusted by the fact that Tori thought she could just move in on him like that.
"Bailey." Sarah whispered as she just watched. She waited until she was inches away from his face before swinging the door open in rage. Instantly, Tori looked up at her with a shocked expression on her face. It was the worst acting she had ever seen.
"Hey guys." Bailey plastered a smile on her face, hiding the anger in her voice. She felt like plunging into the pool and drowning the bitch, but instead she made her way to a chair that had their towels on it. Resting on top was her cell phone. Quickly, she snatched the phone and flipped it open.
"What are you doing?" Tori exclaimed, swimming towards the edge of the pool.
All Bailey could think about during dinner was the connection between her and Jake. First, it was the fact that they were from the same town. And second, because of little Frankie. Bailey heard Tori's wet feet slapping on the concrete as she came closer to her. She quickly dialed Jake's number into her phone, instead of looking him up in her address book, and pressed 'call.'
"You touch me and I swear to God I'll kick your ass." Bailey pointed her finger out at Tori who stopped three feet in front of her.
"Then give me my phone!" she yelled with her hands on her hips. Joe was now out of the pool next to the three girls.
Bailey glanced down at the phone to read: Calling: Jake.
"You're unbelievable." Bailey hissed, her voice filled with venom. She tossed the phone to Joe before leaving the pool room.
A soft 'ding' was heard, then the doors opened on the 4th floor of the hotel. Instantly, Bailey's heart rate picked up as she squeezed Joe's hand.
"Alright, room 407." Kevin said, then knocked on the door. They 6 of them huddled around the door as it began to open.
"Aw, my babies!" Mrs.Jonas cried, then grabbed Kevin, who was closest to her, and hugged him. "How are you guys?!" she asked, overly excited as she went around the circle, hugging everyone. Bailey tensed up when it was her turn, but she was fine. "Come in, come in. I want to meet everyone." with that, she turned back into the hotel room. Everyone followed her in.
"See, it wasn't that bad." Joe whispered, his lips softly moved on Bailey's ear, awakening the butterflies in her stomach.
"Thanks for that." she groaned, making her even more nervous. He shot her a look that screamed 'What'd I do?', but she shook her head as she followed Sarah into the room.
"Ok mom, this is Sarah and Tori." Joe introduced, pointing to them. "-And I think you might know Nick and Kevin there." he dragged along, trying not to crack up at Bailey's expressionless face. "-And this is my girlfriend Bailey." Bailey glanced at him when he said 'girlfriend', then smiled.
"Oh sweetie, it's so nice to finally meet you." his mom gave her another hug. Bailey looked at Joe as if to say, 'You already told her about me?' He nodded, then blushed a little. "Gosh, you're a gorgeous one." she said, pulling away and grabbing her chin. Bailey couldn't help but smile the entire time. Mrs.Jonas then snapped her hand way, "Oh yeah, you're father is out with Frankie picking up a few things. He should be back soon." she turned to Kevin, Nick and Joe. They all nodded in acknowledgement. "Alright kids, I have to go get ready. We're heading out for dinner soon. I'll be in the other room." she informed, before exiting through the door in the center of the room. The two rooms were joined together.
"So, what do you guys want to do?" Sarah asked as Bailey dove onto the bed. She buried her face down into the blanket, waiting for someone else to reply. She was to eager to lay on the comfy bed to bother responding herself. She wanted to give her messed up stomach a little rest.
"Well, I have to go make a phone call. I'll be back." Tori stated, then made her way to the door. "I won't be long." she smiled, Kevin waved before she was gone. Tori made her way down the hall and around the corner, slipping out her cell phone in the process. She held in the 2, then waited at the phone began to ring.
"What's going on?" a guy's voice asked on the other line.
"Can't catch me, dad!" Frankie teased as he ran onto the elevator in the lobby. Mr.Jonas ran, but he didn't make it in time. The doors shut and Frankie was on his way up. After the 'ding', he jetted out and down the hall. He passed room '413' before he spotted a vending machine before the corner of the hallway. His eyes practically bulged out of his head as he looked up at the junk food in front of him. He pressed his face against the glass, looking at his reflection in a 'Three Musketeers' bar when he heard a girl talking.
"Jake, you fucktard, you're not listening to me!" he heard her say. Frankie pulled away from the glass and looked around for the voice. "I almost had him, alright? Chill. I just need a few more days."
"Frankie!" Mr.Jonas yelled down the hallway. He spun around to see his dad stomping after him. After gulping, he heard the girl finish up.
"Gotta go." she muffled into the phone before slipping it back into her pocket.
Frankie kept his eyes on the ground as he walked back. "Sorry Daddy." he mumbled.
"It's alright. I think you're brothers are here." he replied, sliding the keycard into the door. A second later, Frankie squealed as he rushed into the room.
"Joe!" he shrieked, tackling him onto the bed next to Bailey who was now on her back, propping herself up with her elbows.
"Hey kid! Missed me?" Joe replied, tickling his sides. Frankie giggled, then made his was around to Kevin and Nick.
Joe introduced Bailey and Sarah to his dad as Tori entered the room with a smile.
"Nice to meet you Mr.Jonas." Tori shook his hand after the others. Frankie's head popped up at the sound of her voice. He knew it sounded familiar, but shrugged it off.
After Mr.Jonas was greeted, he made his way into the other room.
"You guys are boring." Frankie complained, crossing his arms. "Do something." Everyone looked at each other and laughed.
"Um, what do you want to do?" Bailey asked him.
"Play my Nintendo DS." he replied simply. "-But I left it in the car." he pouted.
"Well, we could go down and get it for you." Joe offered, Frankie nodded before Joe got up and went into the other room. Moments later, he returned with a set of car keys. He waved for Bailey to come with him.
"I wanna come!" Frankie exclaimed.
"Alright, alright. Come on." Joe replied, then shook his head at Sarah who was watching with a smile in amusement. With that, he followed Bailey and Frankie out the door.
Instantly, Frankie bolted to the elevator as Joe and Bailey trailed slowly behind.
"So, you feeling better?" he looked over at her, she nodded. "I told you it wouldn't be bad." She smiled as she replayed the moment in her mind. 'This is my girlfriend, Bailey.' Ah, she loved it.
"C'mon fucktards." he yelled from the elevator causing Bailey to gasp.
"Frankie!" Joe exclaimed, rushing up to him. Bailey was right behind him. "Don't ever say that word! It's bad."
"Sorry." he looked down.
"Where'd you hear that?" Joe asked. He was now squatting down next to his brother, looking him in the eyes. Bailey watched the interaction between the two.
"At the candy box." he replied, Joe looked confused.
"A vending machine?" Bailey asked, he nodded.
"Did it like, talk to you? What'd it'd say?" Joe tried to get him to open up, knowing the machine actually didn't talk.
"I was looking at the chocolate bars, and then I just heard, 'Jake, you, uh, the bad word.'" Frankie cautiously repeated. Instantly, a chill ran down Bailey's spine at the sound of his name.
Just then, the 'ding' was heard and they exited the elevator and made their way through the lobby and outside.
"What else was said?" Joe poked at him even more as they made their way to the white, 2005 rental Impala parked a few yards from the tour busses.
"I don't know. Something about almost having someone or something in a few days. I don't know." he stammered as the eagerness inside of him grew. All he wanted was his DS.
"-And when was this?" Bailey asked.
"Like, before I met you." he replied quickly as Joe unlocked the car. Frankie hopped in, grabbed his DS, then was back at Bailey's side. "Ok, we can go now." he grinned. Joe shook his head and locked the car.
"What do you think that was all about?" Joe asked Bailey as they made their way back onto the elevator. She shrugged her shoulders, she didn't really want to think about it. The last thing she wanted to do was make conclusions from a 6-year-old.
"You think it was Tori?" she asked, then bit her tongue after she realized she said it out loud. "No, never mind." she quickly added. "I didn't mean to -"
"Actually, that's what I was thinking." he trailed off. "- But what are the chances?"
- - - - -
The group of 9 ended up going to Macaroni Grill for dinner. After a whole lot of laughter and full stomachs, they were headed back to the hotel.
"You guys wanna hit up the pool?" Joe asked as they got out of the car.
"Sure." Tori and Bailey replied at the same time, catching Sarah's attention. She could easily read her best friend's eyes; something was going on in her mind.
"I have to call up my mom, see how she's doing." Bailey smiled. "You guys go ahead, I'll meet up with you."
"My suit is on the bus." Joe stated, then started off towards the bus. "Guys, you want me to grab yours?" he asked Kevin and Nick. They shook their heads.
"Na, I think I'm gonna just to back to the room and lay down." Kevin stated, Nick agreed.
"I'll come." Tori offered, looking at Joe. He wasn't a mean person, so he didn't object, but he did give Bailey a look of apology before walking with Tori to the busses.
Sarah stared at Bailey in the darkness of the parking lot. It was going on 10pm and the crickets were heard through the thick air.
"I don't want to talk about it." Bailey stopped Sarah before she even begun, putting her hand up as she called her mom.
After about 10 minutes of reassuring her mother that everything was going good, her and Sarah headed to the busses themselves to get their suits. Joe and Tori had already left.
"I told you I didn't like her." Sarah stated as then headed back into the hotel. Bailey glanced over at her.
"And you're restating that because. . ."
"-Because I'm not stupid and I can see it in your eyes." she replied.
"Whatever." Bailey said, she'd inform her later of what was going on. The two of them were in and out of the hotel room within minutes with their suits on, heading back downstairs to the pool.
The two approached the glass door to the pool room when they saw Joe and Tori. Joe's back was to them as he leaned against the wall of the pool, his arms stretched out on the edge. Bailey stopped Sarah from opening the door as she watched Tori swim towards him, a mischievous smile playing on her face.
Immediately, Bailey's anger inside of her rose. She knew Joe wouldn't do anything, but she was disgusted by the fact that Tori thought she could just move in on him like that.
"Bailey." Sarah whispered as she just watched. She waited until she was inches away from his face before swinging the door open in rage. Instantly, Tori looked up at her with a shocked expression on her face. It was the worst acting she had ever seen.
"Hey guys." Bailey plastered a smile on her face, hiding the anger in her voice. She felt like plunging into the pool and drowning the bitch, but instead she made her way to a chair that had their towels on it. Resting on top was her cell phone. Quickly, she snatched the phone and flipped it open.
"What are you doing?" Tori exclaimed, swimming towards the edge of the pool.
All Bailey could think about during dinner was the connection between her and Jake. First, it was the fact that they were from the same town. And second, because of little Frankie. Bailey heard Tori's wet feet slapping on the concrete as she came closer to her. She quickly dialed Jake's number into her phone, instead of looking him up in her address book, and pressed 'call.'
"You touch me and I swear to God I'll kick your ass." Bailey pointed her finger out at Tori who stopped three feet in front of her.
"Then give me my phone!" she yelled with her hands on her hips. Joe was now out of the pool next to the three girls.
Bailey glanced down at the phone to read: Calling: Jake.
"You're unbelievable." Bailey hissed, her voice filled with venom. She tossed the phone to Joe before leaving the pool room.
A week had passed and everything was going great. Everything between everyone was perfectly fine. Bailey and Tori had become pretty close, or so it had seemed, over the time spent together on their bus and during the shows. Tori knew about her and Joe; she thought it was the cutest thing. That made Bailey feel good, even if she got a little jealous of her sometimes. Everyone loved her.
Sarah was starting to warm up to her also. If her best friend could deal, so could she, even though she knew it'd be better with just the two of them.
"Hey J- Oh, sorry guys." Bailey said, walking into the JB dressing room about an hour before show time. Joe and Tori were sitting on the couch, looking to be having a serious conversation. Bailey faked a smile, gave a little wave, then walked out of the room, making sure the door was shut behind her.
She leaned against the wall by the door in the hallway and shut her eyes for a moment. She knew that nothing was going on between the two of them, but it still stung her to see him talking to another girl so closely like that. Yeah, they all became close on the long bus rides and deep conversations, but unknowingly, Bailey was intimidated by Tori. Tori was drop dead gorgeous. Her body was proportioned correctly, her hair and makeup was always perfect, she had something to say about everything. As much as Bailey hated the attention she received, she envied the girl. She couldn't even compete.
"Hey." the sound of Joe's soft voice made her eyes shoot open. He shut the dressing room door behind him and approached her.
"Hey." her voice cracked a little, but only enough for him to barely notice.
"Bails," he started.
"Joe, don't start. It's nothing." she blew him off, not wanting to get into it at that moment. She didn't have any reasons to back up how she was feeling and she wasn't ready to have a conversation about it. She was still trying to pull it together herself.
"Stop. Just talk to me." He looked down into her beautiful blue eyes between his shaggy, dark chunks of hair that clung to his forehead. He softly brushed a strand of her dark blonde hair out of her eyes as she stared up at him. "I can see it in your eyes. If you don't want me to talk to her, I won't." it was as if Joe read her mind, even though that's not what she was thinking; she wasn't even thinking at all.
"It's not that." she replied, looking away from his captivating stare. He was giving her the stare that could make her tell him anything. She wasn't ready to let her true feelings about Tori flow quite yet.
Knowing that Bailey didn't want to talk about it, Joe just pulled her towards his body and hugged her. Being in his arms made her feel a little better, even more so when he started to caress her back. She closed her eyes as her grip around his torso tightened; she didn't want to let him go.
Joe couldn't understand why she was acting like this all of a sudden. Earlier in the week she seemed fine, but now she couldn't even be in the same room and him and Tori. It felt as is she was giving up on him because a new girl was here. He hoped to God her feelings for him weren't fading because of it.
He then slowly began to pull away from her, only enough so he could get lost in her eyes. He liked her more than anything, but she didn't seem completely convinced. He noticed her eyes starting to tear up as he moved in for a kiss. Softy, their lips met. Bailey let her eyes close as Joe moved his hand to the back of her neck. It was a wonderful few seconds before his tongue trailed her bottom lip; he wanted in. Bailey stepped closer to him to deepen the kiss. His hand moved to her waist, pulling her even closer to his body. Her hands mischievously made their way up the back of his shirt, making the tiny hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He started to smile in the middle of their little make out session, causing her to smile also.
"Shhh." she whispered on his mouth, hoping he wouldn't begin to laugh. She reattached her lips to his before he had the chance.
"Joe!" Kevin yelled down the hall. "Oh, ha ha, sorry." he blushed after seeing them. Bailey pulled her lips away, then pressed her forehead against his chest. "Lockdown time, c'mon."
"C'mon." Joe smiled down at her as he grabbed her hand and started down the hallway. She didn't move.
"You go." she said, letting go of his hand. He tilted his head to the side in confusion. "It's your time with the boys. I'd ruin it. Go."
Bailey wasn't making any sense. "-But you're always there, what are you talking about?"
She shook her head, "Ross is just starting to eye us, that's all." she lied. "I'd just be a distraction." she gave him a weak smile before starting off down the hallway in the opposite direction, leaving Joe alone with his mind racing.
He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration, closing his eyes as he leaned against the wall.
"You alright?" he looked up to see Tori approaching him from the dressing room. He nodded, then walked away to where Kevin was moments ago without a word. She smirked as she watched him trail down the hall, shaking his head.
"Joseph my man! Where've you been?" Alex, their drummer, asked once he closed the door behind him.
Joe faintly smiled, "I've been around."
"Sure looks like it." he smirked. "That new chick, Tori? Damn." Joe shook his head at that comment. "She totally digs you man."
"Ignore him." Greg, their bassist, stated. "He's going on two months."
"Two months of what?" Kevin asked, looking up at the group.
"Two months since he's gotten any. Ain't that right, Al?" Greg smirked.
"Hey guys, knock it off." John, their other guitarist, ordered. "You know I'm the one that's supposed to be making those comments.
"Well, maybe if you would've - "
"All of you, stop!" Nick exclaimed, causing everyone to shut up and stare at him. It was quite for a moment before he spoke. "Where's Bailey?" he asked, looking at his brother's expressionless face.
"She said she didn't want to be a distraction." Joe muttered before hopping up on the counter on the opposite side of the dull room. Everyone stared at him in disbelief.
"Is everything alright?" Kevin asked quietly. Joe shrugged his shoulders. "Don't sweat it man, maybe it's that time of the month or something."
The other guys replied with a few 'yeahs' and 'maybes' before Nick shattered the awkwardness that floated in the room with a few strums of his acoustic.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Bailey! Go get Joe, we're about to sing 'Happy Birthday!'" Kevin stated as people started to gather around the table in the meet and greet room. The cake on the table read 'Happy Birthday Sarah!'. Her best friend was finally turning 17.
"Joe?" she called down the empty hallway.
Without a response, she made her way to the dressing room. She opened the door to reveal Joe topless with Tori on top of him, straddling his waist. Silent tears slid down her face as she watched Tori kiss his lips, down his cheek and to his neck. She couldn't watch anymore as his hands slid up her legs. Uncontrollably, Bailey let out a sob, causing the two of them to look over at her. Instantly, Joe shot up from the couch and snatched his shirt. She received a beaming smirk from Tori as she straightened out her pants.
Joe approached her slowly, making Bailey step backwards with every step he took towards her. The tears fell harder from her face as her hands began to shake.
"Bails," he started.
"No, Joe." he reached out for her. "Joe, NO!" she screamed.
Bailey felt a pair of hands on her shoulders as she awakened. Quickly, she opened her eyes and sat up in her tiny bunk; she just had that horrible nightmare again.
"Hey, hey." Joe's soft voice tried to comfort her. "It was just a bad dream, shhh." he sat on the edge of her bunk and wrapped his arms around her. She squeezed her eyes shut as she leaned into his neck.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, pulling away. She was glad she hadn't stated crying, like the previous nights after that scene played in her mind.
"I didn't see you after the show last night and I was upset, so I told Ross I was crashing on your bus 'til we get to the hotel because you had already asleep when I got here after the meet and greet and I couldn't talk to you." he ranted. "We should be at the hotel in Miami in a few hours. Apparently, we're meeting up with my parents who are still in Florida on vacation. We have the next week off with them!"
"Sweet." she tried to smile and sound a little excited, but the image of Tori on top of him still played in her mind.
"You finally get to meet Frankie and my parents." he smiled at her, trying to lighten her up. She smiled, then wiped the sleep from her eyes. "Tell me what's on your mind." he stated simply. "I hate how you've been acting these past few days. Tell me what's wrong so I can try to fix it."
Bailey stared at him. "It's nothing."
"-And stop telling me it's nothing. Bails, just talk to me." he pleaded, grabbing her hand.
"It's just, I've been having this dream. . ." she trailed off, looking away from him. She tried to find the words to speak, but she chuckled instead. "Now I'm going to sound so pathetic."
"Hey guys. Joe, I didn't know you were here." Tori smiled as she walked past the bunks. Joe gave her a little wave before making her way to the back. Bailey's eyes followed her until she was out of sight.
"Oh, I think I get it." Joe said quietly, looking at Bailey's blank face.
"You can't even imagine."
"Then tell me so I can try." he said, then received a smack from her. "No, not like that." he rubbed his arm. "Just tell me what it was about."
"Basically you two were seconds away from going at it, until I walked it." Bailey replied flatly. "I know it was just a dream, but it still hurt to see it, even if it wasn't real."
"You know I wouldn't do that. . ." he stated, then rubbed her hand with his thumb.
"I know, I know. It's just - " she stammered.
"I get it, really. If I had a dream like that about you, I'd be acting a little different too." he spoke the truth.
"I just feel so childish now, getting upset about something that's not even real. Sorry. . ." she looked down. "I don't know, it's just, I started getting these negative vibes, then I just over-thought everything. I made assumptions when I shouldn't have. . ."
"I'd never hurt you, believe me. I like you way too much." he moved in closer to her face and lightly kissed her on the cheek. She blinked slowly, then smiled.
"I can't wait to meet Frankie." she exclaimed, feeling a little better than she had the night before. "Let's just forget about this, ok?" she asked, he nodded. She smiled, then leaned in and kissed him.
- - - - -
Bailey paced back and forth on the bus as Sarah and Tori sat on the couch making fun of her.
"This isn't funny, I'm so friggin' nervous." she whined, then stopped and felt her cheeks. "Am I red?"
Tori laughed, "No, you look fine. Just chill out and breathe."
Just then, Joe finally came out of the bathroom from taking his shower. Instantly, the room was soaked with his aroma. Bailey thought she was going to pass out from his lovely scent.
"Babe, are you alright?" he chuckled, approaching her and putting the back of his hand up to her forehead. "You look a little pale."
"I'm good." she lied, then grabbed his hand and put it in front of her.
"Bails, they're going to love you, believe me." he assured her. "Frankie is going to be attached to your leg once he meets you."
"HEY!" Nick jumped up behind them. "We're here. Woah, Bailey. Are you ok?"
"She's nervous about meeting your parents." Tori said, still amused.
"I don't think I've ever seen her so nerve wrecked." Sarah added, receiving a glare from Bailey.
Nick laughed, "You'll be -"
"Fine, I know." she finished. "That's what I'm told. That still doesn't change this ugly feeling in my stomach." Bailey informed, then put her hand on her stomach.
"Bail, if Joe can get past your dad, I think you'll be ok." Sarah tried to cheer her up. Joe nodded at her comment.
"Your dad loved me." he smiled cheekily, Bailey elbowed him. He knew he wasn't going to get away with another comment assuring her that she'd be fine meeting his parents, so instead he commented on her appearance. "You look great by the way." Bailey was wearing a pair of black, silver pinstriped Dickie shorts that were cut off at her knees, with a simple white tank top and Converse. She looked a Joe oddly. "Come on." he grabbed her hand and lead her off the buss after Nick. Sarah and Tori followed eventually.
Sarah was starting to warm up to her also. If her best friend could deal, so could she, even though she knew it'd be better with just the two of them.
"Hey J- Oh, sorry guys." Bailey said, walking into the JB dressing room about an hour before show time. Joe and Tori were sitting on the couch, looking to be having a serious conversation. Bailey faked a smile, gave a little wave, then walked out of the room, making sure the door was shut behind her.
She leaned against the wall by the door in the hallway and shut her eyes for a moment. She knew that nothing was going on between the two of them, but it still stung her to see him talking to another girl so closely like that. Yeah, they all became close on the long bus rides and deep conversations, but unknowingly, Bailey was intimidated by Tori. Tori was drop dead gorgeous. Her body was proportioned correctly, her hair and makeup was always perfect, she had something to say about everything. As much as Bailey hated the attention she received, she envied the girl. She couldn't even compete.
"Hey." the sound of Joe's soft voice made her eyes shoot open. He shut the dressing room door behind him and approached her.
"Hey." her voice cracked a little, but only enough for him to barely notice.
"Bails," he started.
"Joe, don't start. It's nothing." she blew him off, not wanting to get into it at that moment. She didn't have any reasons to back up how she was feeling and she wasn't ready to have a conversation about it. She was still trying to pull it together herself.
"Stop. Just talk to me." He looked down into her beautiful blue eyes between his shaggy, dark chunks of hair that clung to his forehead. He softly brushed a strand of her dark blonde hair out of her eyes as she stared up at him. "I can see it in your eyes. If you don't want me to talk to her, I won't." it was as if Joe read her mind, even though that's not what she was thinking; she wasn't even thinking at all.
"It's not that." she replied, looking away from his captivating stare. He was giving her the stare that could make her tell him anything. She wasn't ready to let her true feelings about Tori flow quite yet.
Knowing that Bailey didn't want to talk about it, Joe just pulled her towards his body and hugged her. Being in his arms made her feel a little better, even more so when he started to caress her back. She closed her eyes as her grip around his torso tightened; she didn't want to let him go.
Joe couldn't understand why she was acting like this all of a sudden. Earlier in the week she seemed fine, but now she couldn't even be in the same room and him and Tori. It felt as is she was giving up on him because a new girl was here. He hoped to God her feelings for him weren't fading because of it.
He then slowly began to pull away from her, only enough so he could get lost in her eyes. He liked her more than anything, but she didn't seem completely convinced. He noticed her eyes starting to tear up as he moved in for a kiss. Softy, their lips met. Bailey let her eyes close as Joe moved his hand to the back of her neck. It was a wonderful few seconds before his tongue trailed her bottom lip; he wanted in. Bailey stepped closer to him to deepen the kiss. His hand moved to her waist, pulling her even closer to his body. Her hands mischievously made their way up the back of his shirt, making the tiny hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He started to smile in the middle of their little make out session, causing her to smile also.
"Shhh." she whispered on his mouth, hoping he wouldn't begin to laugh. She reattached her lips to his before he had the chance.
"Joe!" Kevin yelled down the hall. "Oh, ha ha, sorry." he blushed after seeing them. Bailey pulled her lips away, then pressed her forehead against his chest. "Lockdown time, c'mon."
"C'mon." Joe smiled down at her as he grabbed her hand and started down the hallway. She didn't move.
"You go." she said, letting go of his hand. He tilted his head to the side in confusion. "It's your time with the boys. I'd ruin it. Go."
Bailey wasn't making any sense. "-But you're always there, what are you talking about?"
She shook her head, "Ross is just starting to eye us, that's all." she lied. "I'd just be a distraction." she gave him a weak smile before starting off down the hallway in the opposite direction, leaving Joe alone with his mind racing.
He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration, closing his eyes as he leaned against the wall.
"You alright?" he looked up to see Tori approaching him from the dressing room. He nodded, then walked away to where Kevin was moments ago without a word. She smirked as she watched him trail down the hall, shaking his head.
"Joseph my man! Where've you been?" Alex, their drummer, asked once he closed the door behind him.
Joe faintly smiled, "I've been around."
"Sure looks like it." he smirked. "That new chick, Tori? Damn." Joe shook his head at that comment. "She totally digs you man."
"Ignore him." Greg, their bassist, stated. "He's going on two months."
"Two months of what?" Kevin asked, looking up at the group.
"Two months since he's gotten any. Ain't that right, Al?" Greg smirked.
"Hey guys, knock it off." John, their other guitarist, ordered. "You know I'm the one that's supposed to be making those comments.
"Well, maybe if you would've - "
"All of you, stop!" Nick exclaimed, causing everyone to shut up and stare at him. It was quite for a moment before he spoke. "Where's Bailey?" he asked, looking at his brother's expressionless face.
"She said she didn't want to be a distraction." Joe muttered before hopping up on the counter on the opposite side of the dull room. Everyone stared at him in disbelief.
"Is everything alright?" Kevin asked quietly. Joe shrugged his shoulders. "Don't sweat it man, maybe it's that time of the month or something."
The other guys replied with a few 'yeahs' and 'maybes' before Nick shattered the awkwardness that floated in the room with a few strums of his acoustic.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"Bailey! Go get Joe, we're about to sing 'Happy Birthday!'" Kevin stated as people started to gather around the table in the meet and greet room. The cake on the table read 'Happy Birthday Sarah!'. Her best friend was finally turning 17.
"Joe?" she called down the empty hallway.
Without a response, she made her way to the dressing room. She opened the door to reveal Joe topless with Tori on top of him, straddling his waist. Silent tears slid down her face as she watched Tori kiss his lips, down his cheek and to his neck. She couldn't watch anymore as his hands slid up her legs. Uncontrollably, Bailey let out a sob, causing the two of them to look over at her. Instantly, Joe shot up from the couch and snatched his shirt. She received a beaming smirk from Tori as she straightened out her pants.
Joe approached her slowly, making Bailey step backwards with every step he took towards her. The tears fell harder from her face as her hands began to shake.
"Bails," he started.
"No, Joe." he reached out for her. "Joe, NO!" she screamed.
Bailey felt a pair of hands on her shoulders as she awakened. Quickly, she opened her eyes and sat up in her tiny bunk; she just had that horrible nightmare again.
"Hey, hey." Joe's soft voice tried to comfort her. "It was just a bad dream, shhh." he sat on the edge of her bunk and wrapped his arms around her. She squeezed her eyes shut as she leaned into his neck.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, pulling away. She was glad she hadn't stated crying, like the previous nights after that scene played in her mind.
"I didn't see you after the show last night and I was upset, so I told Ross I was crashing on your bus 'til we get to the hotel because you had already asleep when I got here after the meet and greet and I couldn't talk to you." he ranted. "We should be at the hotel in Miami in a few hours. Apparently, we're meeting up with my parents who are still in Florida on vacation. We have the next week off with them!"
"Sweet." she tried to smile and sound a little excited, but the image of Tori on top of him still played in her mind.
"You finally get to meet Frankie and my parents." he smiled at her, trying to lighten her up. She smiled, then wiped the sleep from her eyes. "Tell me what's on your mind." he stated simply. "I hate how you've been acting these past few days. Tell me what's wrong so I can try to fix it."
Bailey stared at him. "It's nothing."
"-And stop telling me it's nothing. Bails, just talk to me." he pleaded, grabbing her hand.
"It's just, I've been having this dream. . ." she trailed off, looking away from him. She tried to find the words to speak, but she chuckled instead. "Now I'm going to sound so pathetic."
"Hey guys. Joe, I didn't know you were here." Tori smiled as she walked past the bunks. Joe gave her a little wave before making her way to the back. Bailey's eyes followed her until she was out of sight.
"Oh, I think I get it." Joe said quietly, looking at Bailey's blank face.
"You can't even imagine."
"Then tell me so I can try." he said, then received a smack from her. "No, not like that." he rubbed his arm. "Just tell me what it was about."
"Basically you two were seconds away from going at it, until I walked it." Bailey replied flatly. "I know it was just a dream, but it still hurt to see it, even if it wasn't real."
"You know I wouldn't do that. . ." he stated, then rubbed her hand with his thumb.
"I know, I know. It's just - " she stammered.
"I get it, really. If I had a dream like that about you, I'd be acting a little different too." he spoke the truth.
"I just feel so childish now, getting upset about something that's not even real. Sorry. . ." she looked down. "I don't know, it's just, I started getting these negative vibes, then I just over-thought everything. I made assumptions when I shouldn't have. . ."
"I'd never hurt you, believe me. I like you way too much." he moved in closer to her face and lightly kissed her on the cheek. She blinked slowly, then smiled.
"I can't wait to meet Frankie." she exclaimed, feeling a little better than she had the night before. "Let's just forget about this, ok?" she asked, he nodded. She smiled, then leaned in and kissed him.
- - - - -
Bailey paced back and forth on the bus as Sarah and Tori sat on the couch making fun of her.
"This isn't funny, I'm so friggin' nervous." she whined, then stopped and felt her cheeks. "Am I red?"
Tori laughed, "No, you look fine. Just chill out and breathe."
Just then, Joe finally came out of the bathroom from taking his shower. Instantly, the room was soaked with his aroma. Bailey thought she was going to pass out from his lovely scent.
"Babe, are you alright?" he chuckled, approaching her and putting the back of his hand up to her forehead. "You look a little pale."
"I'm good." she lied, then grabbed his hand and put it in front of her.
"Bails, they're going to love you, believe me." he assured her. "Frankie is going to be attached to your leg once he meets you."
"HEY!" Nick jumped up behind them. "We're here. Woah, Bailey. Are you ok?"
"She's nervous about meeting your parents." Tori said, still amused.
"I don't think I've ever seen her so nerve wrecked." Sarah added, receiving a glare from Bailey.
Nick laughed, "You'll be -"
"Fine, I know." she finished. "That's what I'm told. That still doesn't change this ugly feeling in my stomach." Bailey informed, then put her hand on her stomach.
"Bail, if Joe can get past your dad, I think you'll be ok." Sarah tried to cheer her up. Joe nodded at her comment.
"Your dad loved me." he smiled cheekily, Bailey elbowed him. He knew he wasn't going to get away with another comment assuring her that she'd be fine meeting his parents, so instead he commented on her appearance. "You look great by the way." Bailey was wearing a pair of black, silver pinstriped Dickie shorts that were cut off at her knees, with a simple white tank top and Converse. She looked a Joe oddly. "Come on." he grabbed her hand and lead her off the buss after Nick. Sarah and Tori followed eventually.
"SARAH!" Bailey screamed as she ran up to her and gave her a big hug. "Oh my God, what are you doing here?!" she asked in excitement.
"Your mom talked to your boss, apparently they're really close friends, then BAM, here I am." Sarah replied smiling. "So how bummed were you when you didn't get to crash on your bus last night?"
"You're why the bus wasn't here?"
She nodded, "Yeah, they had to come and pick me up. It was supposed to be a surprise, so. . ."
"Well I'm surprised!" Bailey exclaimed, then hugged her friend again. "It's so great to see you! How long are you going to be here?"
"I just got here and you're already asking me when I'm leaving?!" she asked with a chuckle.
"Hey, you know I didn't mean it like that!" Bailey smiled. "Oh, have you met the guys yet?"
"No, I haven't met anyone, except for Ross."
"Alright, hurry! Let's go. We might be able to make it to their bus before it takes off." Bailey informed, then grabbed her friend's hand and ran off the bus. Luckily, they made it to the boys' bus before Bill, their bus driver, closed the doors and started the engine.
"In a little hurry there, ladies?" he asked with a small smile. Bailey nodded, then lead Sarah into the back room. Nick was on the floor playing Guitar Hero, Kevin was pulled up to a table on his laptop, and Joe was lying down on the couch on his stomach. No one noticed that the two of them were in the doorway.
Bailey looked at Sarah and put her finger to her mouth as she tip-toed towards Joe. His face was down on the cushion facing the inside of the couch. She took her finger and softly dragged it across his cheek.
"Stoooooop." he whined, thinking it was one of his brothers. Nick and Kevin looked up at Joe's voice to finally see the girls. Bailey put her finger to her mouth again so they wouldn't give her away, then went back to Joe.
She slowly stood up and quietly stepped up onto the couch. It shifted a bit, but Joe still didn't move. He was now between her legs as she squatted over top of him, trying to keep her balance. She then began to trace her fingers up and down his back. She noticed a smile appear on his face, but his eyes were still closed. Bailey then just sat herself down on his butt and pinched his sides, causing his head to shoot up.
"Finally!" Bailey laughed at Joe's face.
"Hey, that felt good." he mumbled as he put his face back down into his arms.
"I want you to meet someone." Bailey stated as she climbed off of his back and stood in front of her best friend. He was disappointed that she had got off of him. "This is Sarah!" she waved her arms in front of her. "That's Kevin and Nick." she said pointing to them. Joe didn't move from the couch. " - And this here." she walked back over to the couch. "It's our comfy couch. When you fall on it, like this." Bailey threw herself on top of Joe, he groaned. "It makes noise." she smiled. "Wanna try? We call him Joe."
"Yeah!" Sarah exclaimed, then went to sit down on him also. Joe instantly shot up from the couch sending Bailey to the floor next to Nick.
"Hi Sarah." Joe said, then sat down normally on the couch.
She eyed him. "So, I hear things are good." she replied, glanced at Bailey, then back at him. He smiled and looked down.
"Yeah, it's nice."
"Holy crap." Kevin exclaimed, staring at the computer screen. "1,047 New Friend Requests."
"No way!" Sarah replied.
"Yeah, come look." he said, then scooted over on the couch so she could sit next to him. She was going to fit in just fine.
"Ahem, so Nick. I didn't forget about that number." Bailey grinned.
Nick paused the game, then turned his whole body to look at her. "You really want to call it?" he asked, she nodded. "Alright." she noticed his face light up at bit as he went to his bunk to get his phone. Bailey turned to Joe to find him staring at her. She grinned, then rubbed her hands together eagerly.
All Joe wanted to do was hold her. He loved the feeling of having someone in his arms. He loved the feeling of actually liking the person he was holding onto. It had been a while since he'd felt that way.
"Here." Nick reappeared with his phone and the note. He tossed them to Bailey.
"I'm not calling her, you are." she replied, then pulled her legs under her and sat 'Indian style' while holing his phone up to him. "Come on, it'll make her day. Even her year. Just do it."
Just like that, Nick was convinced. "Alright." he said, then took his phone back. He made sure to block his number before dialing. After a few seconds with the phone up to his ear, he spoke. "Hello, Jordyn? It's Nick." he waited a moment. "Yeah, Jonas." screams could be heard through the tiny speaker as he pulled the phone away from his ear. He looked stunned, causing everyone to laugh. Nick ended up making his way to his bunk with the girl still on the line.
"That was nice of you." Joe stated, looking at Bailey. She spun herself around on the floor to stare up at him on the couch. "He wouldn't have called if someone didn't push him. He gets shy like that."
"Ahem, yeah, Joseph." Kevin commented, looking up from the computer screen. Joe glared at him.
"Oh, so you had girl issues too, huh?" Bailey asked, flickering her eyebrows up and down.
Joe laughed, "Like you wouldn't believe."
"Hm." she said before joining him on the couch. She leaned into the side of his body and rested her head on his shoulder. "Still having girl issues?" she smiled as he wrapped his arm around her waist.
"I wouldn't call it an 'issue'." he replied, smiling down at her.
"Oh, then what would you call it?"
Joe tried to think of something good to say, but his mind went blank. "I don't know, but I like it." He kissed the top of her head.
"That works." she stated, then nuzzled her head into his neck. He was loving it. Bailey was the only girl to ever make him feel this way.
- - - - -
"Joe, get up." Kevin said loudly. It was about 10am the next morning and they'd be at the next arena soon.
Joe slowly opened his eyes to see Bailey asleep with a pillow under her head on his lap. His hand rested on her stomach where her fingers were interlocked with his. She was curled up under a small afghan that was previously hidden behind the couch before they dozed off the night before.
"I love waking up like this." Joe stated, then rested his head back on the couch in satisfaction. Kevin just looked at him. "Well, without hearing your voice first thing." Joe smirked, knowing his brother was glaring at him. Bailey squeezed his hand to let him know she was awake.
"HI ROSS!" Nick greeted loudly from the front of the bus, hoping Joe, Bailey and Kevin had heard his alert.
Instantly, Bailey shot up from Joe's lap and made her way to the other end of the couch and smacked her face so she'd look awake. Joe basically did the same thing, except he straightened out his pants a bit and fluffed his hair. Ross didn't know that anything was going on between anyone and they weren't sure how he'd react, so for now they decided to play it cool.
"What's he doing here? Aren't we still moving?" Joe hissed, a little aggravated at the fact that they were currently going to have to hide whatever was between them. Ross would flip, only because he would see it as a distraction to the band. But everyone knew that it wasn't like that.
"I think we stopped for gas or something, I don't know." Kevin tossed that thought in the air as Bailey wiped the sleep from her eyes.
"Hey kids." Ross entered the back of the bus. To him, everything looked normal. "I'd like you to meet someone new."
"We already met Sarah." Kevin informed.
"No, no. We got a new assistant." he replied, stepping out of the way to reveal a gorgeous girl who looked to be around 16 or 17 years old. She had beautiful, long and wavy chestnut hair that came up a little from her elbows. Her eyes were a deep, emerald green that you could easily get lost in. "Guys, and Bailey, this is Tori. Tori, that's Kevin, Joe and Bailey." he introduced her, pointing to everyone as he spoke.
"Hey guys." she gave a little wave as she glanced at everyone, unintentionally staring at Joe for a bit longer. No one besides Kevin noticed, but he shook it off. He knew that all the ladies loved him.
"Alright, I'm leaving her here until we get to the arena." Ross stated, then started to head off. "Get to know her a bit."
"Where exactly are we?" Bailey asked, as he walked away.
"Were in Atlanta, but we'll be in Albany soon for the next show." Ross called back. He was almost off the bus before Bailey yelled.
"Georgia?"
"Yeah." was his last word before the bus started up again and they were off. Bailey tried not to show any emotion as she looked up, waiting for someone to start a conversation with the new girl. Instead, Joe spoke to her.
"What's that look for?" he asked.
Bailey shook her head, "Oh, it's nothing."
"Bails, I can tell by your face."
"Jake's from Atlanta, that's all." she replied. Joe then regretted asking.
"I'm pretty excited to be working with you guys!" Tori smiled, then sat down on the empty couch across from Joe and Bailey. She could tell it was a touchy subject, so she changed it.
"Did Ross tell you what he was having you do?" Joe asked her. He stared into her eyes as he waited for her response.
"Nope. He just said to play it cool for now." she replied. Bailey chuckled in her mind; that was exactly what Ross had told her and she still had yet to have some sort of responsibility. Figuring she'd be hip and hip with Tori, she wanted to get to know her.
"So you're from Atlanta?" Bailey asked, Tori nodded. "That's cool."
The conversation sparked from there. Eventually Sarah and Nick joined the group and hopped in also. They learned that Tori had a huge family that she was really close to and that she was a little disappointed to be away from her boyfriend of 7 months to help out on this tour. When they go to talking about music, Bailey's attention was grabbed. It was as if Tori was reading her off her iPod as she named some of Bailey's favorite bands; she was liking this girl already.
Before they knew it, the were at the arena.
"Hey Bailey." Sarah called out as everyone else made their way off the bus. Sarah stared as she watched Joe trail closely behind Tori as they exited the bus. She waited until everyone was gone before she spoke to her best friend. "What do you think of her?"
"Who, Tori?" she asked, Sarah nodded. "I think she's pretty cool. Why?"
"I don't know. She just seems familiar, that's all."
"What, are you having one of those feelings again?" she nodded again, making Bailey eye her. "I'm sure it's fine. I mean, she's from Atlanta. That's a far place from Delaware. I'm sure she just reminds you of someone else."
Sarah agreed with her, then shook it off.
What could possibly happen?
"Your mom talked to your boss, apparently they're really close friends, then BAM, here I am." Sarah replied smiling. "So how bummed were you when you didn't get to crash on your bus last night?"
"You're why the bus wasn't here?"
She nodded, "Yeah, they had to come and pick me up. It was supposed to be a surprise, so. . ."
"Well I'm surprised!" Bailey exclaimed, then hugged her friend again. "It's so great to see you! How long are you going to be here?"
"I just got here and you're already asking me when I'm leaving?!" she asked with a chuckle.
"Hey, you know I didn't mean it like that!" Bailey smiled. "Oh, have you met the guys yet?"
"No, I haven't met anyone, except for Ross."
"Alright, hurry! Let's go. We might be able to make it to their bus before it takes off." Bailey informed, then grabbed her friend's hand and ran off the bus. Luckily, they made it to the boys' bus before Bill, their bus driver, closed the doors and started the engine.
"In a little hurry there, ladies?" he asked with a small smile. Bailey nodded, then lead Sarah into the back room. Nick was on the floor playing Guitar Hero, Kevin was pulled up to a table on his laptop, and Joe was lying down on the couch on his stomach. No one noticed that the two of them were in the doorway.
Bailey looked at Sarah and put her finger to her mouth as she tip-toed towards Joe. His face was down on the cushion facing the inside of the couch. She took her finger and softly dragged it across his cheek.
"Stoooooop." he whined, thinking it was one of his brothers. Nick and Kevin looked up at Joe's voice to finally see the girls. Bailey put her finger to her mouth again so they wouldn't give her away, then went back to Joe.
She slowly stood up and quietly stepped up onto the couch. It shifted a bit, but Joe still didn't move. He was now between her legs as she squatted over top of him, trying to keep her balance. She then began to trace her fingers up and down his back. She noticed a smile appear on his face, but his eyes were still closed. Bailey then just sat herself down on his butt and pinched his sides, causing his head to shoot up.
"Finally!" Bailey laughed at Joe's face.
"Hey, that felt good." he mumbled as he put his face back down into his arms.
"I want you to meet someone." Bailey stated as she climbed off of his back and stood in front of her best friend. He was disappointed that she had got off of him. "This is Sarah!" she waved her arms in front of her. "That's Kevin and Nick." she said pointing to them. Joe didn't move from the couch. " - And this here." she walked back over to the couch. "It's our comfy couch. When you fall on it, like this." Bailey threw herself on top of Joe, he groaned. "It makes noise." she smiled. "Wanna try? We call him Joe."
"Yeah!" Sarah exclaimed, then went to sit down on him also. Joe instantly shot up from the couch sending Bailey to the floor next to Nick.
"Hi Sarah." Joe said, then sat down normally on the couch.
She eyed him. "So, I hear things are good." she replied, glanced at Bailey, then back at him. He smiled and looked down.
"Yeah, it's nice."
"Holy crap." Kevin exclaimed, staring at the computer screen. "1,047 New Friend Requests."
"No way!" Sarah replied.
"Yeah, come look." he said, then scooted over on the couch so she could sit next to him. She was going to fit in just fine.
"Ahem, so Nick. I didn't forget about that number." Bailey grinned.
Nick paused the game, then turned his whole body to look at her. "You really want to call it?" he asked, she nodded. "Alright." she noticed his face light up at bit as he went to his bunk to get his phone. Bailey turned to Joe to find him staring at her. She grinned, then rubbed her hands together eagerly.
All Joe wanted to do was hold her. He loved the feeling of having someone in his arms. He loved the feeling of actually liking the person he was holding onto. It had been a while since he'd felt that way.
"Here." Nick reappeared with his phone and the note. He tossed them to Bailey.
"I'm not calling her, you are." she replied, then pulled her legs under her and sat 'Indian style' while holing his phone up to him. "Come on, it'll make her day. Even her year. Just do it."
Just like that, Nick was convinced. "Alright." he said, then took his phone back. He made sure to block his number before dialing. After a few seconds with the phone up to his ear, he spoke. "Hello, Jordyn? It's Nick." he waited a moment. "Yeah, Jonas." screams could be heard through the tiny speaker as he pulled the phone away from his ear. He looked stunned, causing everyone to laugh. Nick ended up making his way to his bunk with the girl still on the line.
"That was nice of you." Joe stated, looking at Bailey. She spun herself around on the floor to stare up at him on the couch. "He wouldn't have called if someone didn't push him. He gets shy like that."
"Ahem, yeah, Joseph." Kevin commented, looking up from the computer screen. Joe glared at him.
"Oh, so you had girl issues too, huh?" Bailey asked, flickering her eyebrows up and down.
Joe laughed, "Like you wouldn't believe."
"Hm." she said before joining him on the couch. She leaned into the side of his body and rested her head on his shoulder. "Still having girl issues?" she smiled as he wrapped his arm around her waist.
"I wouldn't call it an 'issue'." he replied, smiling down at her.
"Oh, then what would you call it?"
Joe tried to think of something good to say, but his mind went blank. "I don't know, but I like it." He kissed the top of her head.
"That works." she stated, then nuzzled her head into his neck. He was loving it. Bailey was the only girl to ever make him feel this way.
- - - - -
"Joe, get up." Kevin said loudly. It was about 10am the next morning and they'd be at the next arena soon.
Joe slowly opened his eyes to see Bailey asleep with a pillow under her head on his lap. His hand rested on her stomach where her fingers were interlocked with his. She was curled up under a small afghan that was previously hidden behind the couch before they dozed off the night before.
"I love waking up like this." Joe stated, then rested his head back on the couch in satisfaction. Kevin just looked at him. "Well, without hearing your voice first thing." Joe smirked, knowing his brother was glaring at him. Bailey squeezed his hand to let him know she was awake.
"HI ROSS!" Nick greeted loudly from the front of the bus, hoping Joe, Bailey and Kevin had heard his alert.
Instantly, Bailey shot up from Joe's lap and made her way to the other end of the couch and smacked her face so she'd look awake. Joe basically did the same thing, except he straightened out his pants a bit and fluffed his hair. Ross didn't know that anything was going on between anyone and they weren't sure how he'd react, so for now they decided to play it cool.
"What's he doing here? Aren't we still moving?" Joe hissed, a little aggravated at the fact that they were currently going to have to hide whatever was between them. Ross would flip, only because he would see it as a distraction to the band. But everyone knew that it wasn't like that.
"I think we stopped for gas or something, I don't know." Kevin tossed that thought in the air as Bailey wiped the sleep from her eyes.
"Hey kids." Ross entered the back of the bus. To him, everything looked normal. "I'd like you to meet someone new."
"We already met Sarah." Kevin informed.
"No, no. We got a new assistant." he replied, stepping out of the way to reveal a gorgeous girl who looked to be around 16 or 17 years old. She had beautiful, long and wavy chestnut hair that came up a little from her elbows. Her eyes were a deep, emerald green that you could easily get lost in. "Guys, and Bailey, this is Tori. Tori, that's Kevin, Joe and Bailey." he introduced her, pointing to everyone as he spoke.
"Hey guys." she gave a little wave as she glanced at everyone, unintentionally staring at Joe for a bit longer. No one besides Kevin noticed, but he shook it off. He knew that all the ladies loved him.
"Alright, I'm leaving her here until we get to the arena." Ross stated, then started to head off. "Get to know her a bit."
"Where exactly are we?" Bailey asked, as he walked away.
"Were in Atlanta, but we'll be in Albany soon for the next show." Ross called back. He was almost off the bus before Bailey yelled.
"Georgia?"
"Yeah." was his last word before the bus started up again and they were off. Bailey tried not to show any emotion as she looked up, waiting for someone to start a conversation with the new girl. Instead, Joe spoke to her.
"What's that look for?" he asked.
Bailey shook her head, "Oh, it's nothing."
"Bails, I can tell by your face."
"Jake's from Atlanta, that's all." she replied. Joe then regretted asking.
"I'm pretty excited to be working with you guys!" Tori smiled, then sat down on the empty couch across from Joe and Bailey. She could tell it was a touchy subject, so she changed it.
"Did Ross tell you what he was having you do?" Joe asked her. He stared into her eyes as he waited for her response.
"Nope. He just said to play it cool for now." she replied. Bailey chuckled in her mind; that was exactly what Ross had told her and she still had yet to have some sort of responsibility. Figuring she'd be hip and hip with Tori, she wanted to get to know her.
"So you're from Atlanta?" Bailey asked, Tori nodded. "That's cool."
The conversation sparked from there. Eventually Sarah and Nick joined the group and hopped in also. They learned that Tori had a huge family that she was really close to and that she was a little disappointed to be away from her boyfriend of 7 months to help out on this tour. When they go to talking about music, Bailey's attention was grabbed. It was as if Tori was reading her off her iPod as she named some of Bailey's favorite bands; she was liking this girl already.
Before they knew it, the were at the arena.
"Hey Bailey." Sarah called out as everyone else made their way off the bus. Sarah stared as she watched Joe trail closely behind Tori as they exited the bus. She waited until everyone was gone before she spoke to her best friend. "What do you think of her?"
"Who, Tori?" she asked, Sarah nodded. "I think she's pretty cool. Why?"
"I don't know. She just seems familiar, that's all."
"What, are you having one of those feelings again?" she nodded again, making Bailey eye her. "I'm sure it's fine. I mean, she's from Atlanta. That's a far place from Delaware. I'm sure she just reminds you of someone else."
Sarah agreed with her, then shook it off.
What could possibly happen?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)