"You ready to head in?" Sam asked, peeking out the window. "There.. are a lot of people outside tonight, so.. if you want to go first.." I sat up, looking out the window. He wasn't kidding. I would always be surprised that despite how cold it was, that never kept people from waiting out so early.

"Y-yeah, I can go." I finally said, smiling at him. He smirked back at me.

"I mean, I have no problem going in together, I just thought-"

"It's okay, it's.. probably for the best." I said, leaning in, gently kissing him on the lips.

"How's your face feeling?" I asked, getting up from the couch. He shrugged.

"I'll be fine." He giggled to himself.

"Do you want more ice or-"

"Jess, I'm fine." He said softly, staring up at me with dazed eyes.

"Okay.." I sighed. "I'll.. I'll see you inside then." His smile grew as he nodded.

"Hey, wait up, I'm heading out too." Josh called, rolling out of his bunk. He quickly fixed his hair and straightened out his clothes.

"Of course you are." I laughed, waiting at the top of the steps. He smirked at me, shaking his head.

"Come on." He said, wrapping his arm around me, leading us down the steps. "And don't worry, once the tour is over we can make this go away. But.. it's just easier to keep playing along so they don't ask questions."

"Whatever you say." I giggled to myself. I heard screams coming from outside the venue as we stepped off the bus. Josh flashed them a smile, waving to them as we got closer.

"So.. are we gonna talk about-"

"No." I laughed, shaking my head. He sighed, nodding.

"Gotcha."

As we got inside, he pulled his arm away, giving me a subtle smile.

"I'm sure he'll be right in." He said, motioning towards the door before heading backstage. I smirked, nodding, leaning back up against the wall as I pulled out my camera, adjusting it while waited.

"Hey!" I heard from down the hall. My stomach dropped. Unfortunately, I'd know that voice anywhere.

"Oh.. hey." I managed, forcing a smile. Charlotte made her way over, guitar slung over her shoulder, flashing me the fakest smile I had ever seen, waving enthusiastically.

"You excited for the show?" She said, now standing uncomfortably close to me. I nodded.

"Yeah, should be fun." I said simply, keeping my eyes locked on my camera.

"Yeah, after should be even better though, Jake promised to teach me some new stuff, and there's nothing better than learning from the best." She said. I could hear the evil smile in her voice. I nodded.

"Yeah, he's really good." I said, finally looking up at her. She nodded, her eyes getting wide.

"He really is, anyone would be lucky to get to spend time with him, let alone date him." I felt my cheeks burn. Where was she going with this?

"Mhm.." I said. She nodded.

"Yeah, you of course would know, out of anyone, but I guess things don't always work out. What can you do, right? At least you have options here." My stomach dropped, my body going cold.

"W-what do you m-"

"Well, anyway, gotta go. Him and I are hanging out before the show, and who knows where that'll lead to." She giggled to herself. "See you later!" And then she made her way down the hall.

I kept my eyes on her until she disappeared, my heart pounding in my chest. He was already hanging out with her? Despite everything I told him? Despite everything he had just said to me..

I shook the thought. I didn't matter anymore. He could do whatever he wanted. If anything, this just made my choice even easier. Whether Sam wanted something serious or not..

When I turned back around, I saw Jake making his way down the hall. My stomach dropped. He was probably already on his way to see her.

"Hey.." He said, giving me a gentle smile. My heart started beating faster.

"Hi." I said plainly. I looked down at his hands to see him carrying two bottles of water. I assumed the other one was for her. "That for Charlotte?" I blurted out.

His cheeks burned red as his eyes got wider.

"N-no.." He said softly, shaking his head. "I.. I actually.. I got it for you." He held one of the bottles out to me, biting down on his lip.

"Oh.." I said, hesitating before taking it from him. "T-thank you." He shrugged, smiling back at me.

"But.. funny, considering I just ran into her. She said she was hanging out with you before the show so, I just assumed.." I said, looking down at my feet. His face dropped.

"W-what are you talking about? Jess, I'm not-"

"It's fine, you don't owe me anything anymore." I said plainly, trying to keep my voice from shaking. I forced a smile. "You can do whatever you want, right?" He shook his head, his eyes getting wide.

"Jess, I.. t-there's nothing.. I'm not-"

"Look, I.. I don't care what you decide to do. I mean, I get it. Like I said, you two probably have way more in common but.. I thought we were above lying to each other about it." I said softly, moving away from him. I grabbed my camera bag, tossing it over my shoulder. "And.. it's not like she wasn't a huge reason for that whole argument so.. if you're trying to get back at me then.. congrats, I guess." I sighed, turning away, making my way down the hall.

"Jess.." I heard from behind me. My chest felt tight, but I kept walking. I had no reason to be upset. We weren't together anymore. He didn't owe me anything. And I had Sam.

Kind of.

"You alright?" I heard. I turned to see Sam standing outside one of the side doors, propped open while he smoked. My cheeks burned.

"I'm fine." I said simply. He smirked at me, taking a drag.

"You're allowed to be upset, you know." He said, blowing away the smoke in the opposite direction. I shrugged.

"I'm fine. He can do whatever he wants." I said softly. He nodded, holding his stare on me.

"I just.. I don't want you to think you ever have to.. act like you're okay.. when you're really not. It's okay, it won't hurt my feelings." He said simply, taking another drag. I felt my stomach drop.

He was just.. okay with me talking about Jake to him? That didn't sound like someone who.. wanted a relationship. That really did sound like.. friends.

"You should come back in." I said, trying to change the subject. I knew even just thinking about Jake would upset me. I reached out for him, gently grabbing onto his shirt, pulling him towards me. "It's freezing. And.. smoking is bad for you." I laughed. He smirked, taking one last drag before tossing it onto the floor, stomping it out with his foot.

"You're right." He sighed, blowing the smoke away before reaching his arm out, wrapping it around me. I couldn't help but smile, wrapping my arm around him as he guided us down the hallway into his dressing room.

I went over towards the counter, hopping up as he went into the fridge, grabbing us two beers. I shoved the water bottle into my camera bag as he came over, popping off one of the tops and handing it over. I took a big sip, holding my stare on him, feeling my cheeks burn.

"How does your face feel?" I asked, giggling to myself. He shrugged, smirking back at me, taking a sip.

"I'll survive." He sighed.

"I'm sorry." I said softly. His smile grew as he moved closer to me, leaning up against the counter.

"Well, I'm sure my face feels a lot better than Jake's hand right now." He laughed, taking another sip. I bit down on my lip, holding in my smile.

I'm sure he was right. And I knew how Jake got when he thought his playing would be compromised in any way. He was probably on edge right now, because god forbid he was anything short of perfect, every second of every day.

I always felt bad that he put so much pressure on himself. If only he knew how everyone else already saw him.

I tilted my bottle back, finishing it with one final swig. I could see Sam smile, going back over to the fridge.

"Another?" He asked, going in and grabbing two more bottles. I nodded, sliding the empty bottle across the counter.

"Yeah." I sighed. He popped off the cap, handing it over to me.

"So.." He started, finishing his drink. "Do you want to talk about what's bothering you now?" He asked. My heart started beating faster.

"N-not really." I said, looking down at my feet. He nodded, smiling back at me as he moved closer, standing between my legs. I peeked back up at him, feeling my cheeks burning.

"If it's bothering you, then you should talk about it. But, if you really don't want to, I won't push it. I just need you to know that.. you can always talk to me about anything." My smile grew as I reached up, gently touching his cheek. He gave me gentle smile, his eyes in a daze as he stared back into mine.

"Okay.." I sighed, taking a big sip, placing my bottle down next to me. I reached out, gently rubbing my hands up his arms. He smirked back, his cheeks burning. "Have you.. ever had a girlfriend before?" I blurted out. His eyes got wide as he held his stare on me, his smile growing.

"Oh.." He said softly. "Um.. okay.. uh.. well, I guess.. technically.. officially.. no." I bit down on my lip, nodding.

"Okay." I said softly, looking down at my hands, now gently tracing their way up his arms.

"Why?" He asked. I shrugged, avoiding his eyes.

"I don't know, I just.. I hear things and then.. I overthink and I just-"

"And you just want to talk about it, it's okay." He said, tilting my chin back up to face him. I nodded.

"Okay, so.. what do you want to talk about?" He said simply, gently tracing his fingers up my neck, tucking my hair behind my ear.

"Well, do you.. do you ever want to?" I asked. His smile grew.

"Mhm.." He said, nodding. "It's just that.. I take that kind of thing.. seriously. I.. I don't just.. jump into just anything. I.. I want to make sure it's someone.. that I really want to be with."

I nodded, feeling my heart beat faster.

"But.. you've hooked up with plenty of girls before.. right? You.. you never wanted to be with.. any of them?" I asked, avoiding his eyes. Part of me really didn't want to know the answer.

"Oh.. well.." He started, laughing nervously. "Um.. I.. okay, I.. no, I.. I guess not."

"Oh.." I said softly, keeping my eyes down.

"But.. but you've hooked up with guys before, right? So.. you.. you know-"

"No." I said, now picking at my nails, feeling my cheeks burn bright red.

"N-no?" He asked. I shook my head.

"Oh.." He said quietly. I peeked up at him, feeling my body get hot.

"So.. that's something that's.. important to you." He said, gently taking my hand. I sighed, feeling a little better. His touch was always comforting. He slowly intertwined our fingers as he held his stare on me. It felt like my heart was going to beat out of my chest as he moved closer.

"Yeah." I nodded. He bit down on his lip, staring back at me, his cheeks burning. "Is.. is it not.. to you?" I asked. He hesitated, keeping his eyes locked on mine.

"I.. I mean.. I don't know.. but maybe it would be.. if it was with someone I was actually.. in love with." He said softly. I nodding, feeling a smile escape my lips, my heart starting to beat faster.

"So.. h-how many guys have you.. been with then?" He asked. And then my heart dropped.

"Just.. one." I said softly.

"Oh."