some things are better left unsaid.

OOC – Hey guys, I’m sorry that this chapter took forever to come out… I’ve had five in the morning dance six times a week with lots of other activities, plus I got another lung infection so I’ve been in bed a lot watching shows on VH1, plus I’ve been texting a lot with a now good friend of mine. Also, this chapter will feature Rockesh – again – and you can find them on myspace at http://www.myspace.com/rockesh . You won’t be disappointed if you listen! They’re working on their second CD, too, and that should be out sometime next year.

When Blood & Youth Were Warmer

Chapter Six

Pete stood in the terminal of the O’Hare airport, impatiently tapping his foot against the ground. Ashlee was flying in for a month, and he was waiting for her… but where was she? He wanted to see her more than anything – he needed her right now through everything that had been happening. She was his shelter and he hadn’t been able to see her since they left New York. Her plane just landed. That only meant a few more minutes until she was in his arms again.

He glanced behind his glasses at a few people staring at him. He hated when people stared – it was really rude in his opinion. But when you were famous, they couldn’t help it. Couldn’t they tell that he didn’t want them staring? Couldn’t they tell that he just wanted to see his girlfriend and get the hell out of the public eye?

It was a head of blonde hair that caught his eyes as she came racing through the arrivals gate. She paused for a moment to look around, and then her eyes locked with his. Within a moment she was bounding across the terminal and soon found herself in his arms. Wrapping his arms protectively around her, Pete gave her a long kiss on the forehead and spun her around. “Hey, Ashlee,” He said as he set her down, taking his hand and gently running it down the side of her face.

“Hey,” She greeted him as she leaned up and gave him a soft kiss. After a moment she pulled away and said, “I’m so sorry I couldn’t come sooner, Pete. My dad was being an ass and wouldn’t let me leave until we got two more tracks done… I’m so sorry.”

“It’s alright, you don’t have to apologize. I understand,” The bass player said as he took his girlfriend’s hand and led her over to where baggage claim was. Usually the two would have been all over each other like they usually were… but given the situation, both were extremely quiet and gripped onto each other’s hands and didn’t dare let go. After a few moments, they grabbed onto the two bags that were hers and – still hand in hand – made their way towards the exit. “I have Joe waiting outside to take us to the house,” Pete told the singer, who nodded her head solemnly.

After making their way to the black Range Rover that Joe liked to drive around and putting in the luggage, the two climbed into the back seat; Pete on the left side and Ashlee in the middle. Keeping their heads low as they made their way out of the airport to ignore the stares of bystanders, they both raised their heads as soon as Joe took the left turn to get them out of there. “Hi, Ashlee,” Joe said as he glanced in the view-view mirror. “You’re looking quite gorgeous today.”

“Thanks, Joe. It’s really nice to be able to see you, too,” Ashlee said with a weak smile across her face as she leaned against Pete, who wrapped an arm around her shoulders and rested his head on top of hers. “How far is the drive to your house?” The blonde asked softly as Pete replied, “About forty minutes with all of the traffic. You alright?”

“Yeah, I’m just really tired. I was up all night packing to make sure I didn’t forget anything because I won’t be going back for a while,” Ashlee said with a soft sigh. “You want to sleep for the ride?” Pete asked, and Ashlee nodded her head. “Sure,” She said quietly. She tilted her head up to look at him and she said, “As long as Joe doesn’t wake me up by blasting Kanye West again.” Joe, at that, started snickering, causing Pete to glare at him through the mirror. “He won’t. I’ll make sure of it,” Pete said, still eyeing Joe, who had stopped laughing but was smiling really wide. With that, Ashlee nodded and closed her eyes, her head still resting against her boyfriend’s shoulder.

It was so good to have her here again… even if it only lasted for a month. She was still here for a month more than he thought he was going to see her for.

Andy smiled as he and Nicky walked through Central Park. This was the second full day he was able to spend with her, even if it was at midnight… it was still a day for them. The two were walking with their arms interlocked as they walked on the sidewalk, simply talking about everything and anything. They weren’t hiding anything… they didn’t feel the need to.

“So,” Nicky said with a soft laugh as she glanced up at the stars above them. “You came back to New York City for what reason? You forgot something at the theater or something and you just happened to want to come visit me?” She glanced at the drummer, raising an amused eyebrow as he grinned nervously.

“Actually, I just needed to get away from everything back home. With the funeral over with and with Greta and William fighting… everyone just needed to have time to themselves… and I decided the best thing for myself would to be to come back here.”

“Why here?” She asked.

He took a few moments to reply. How was he supposed to tell her how much he liked her? They had only known each other a little more than two weeks. She probably didn’t feel the same. He didn’t answer the question – something else caught his eye. “Hey, isn’t that the bridge from Spiderman 3?” He asked, pointing to the bridge. Nicky grinned. “Yeah, it is. Want to go walk on it just so we can say we did?”

“Sounds perfect,” The drummer said as the two took off in a jog towards the bridge, still locked at the arms. As they arrived, Nicky let go and did a few spins around. Andy stood back and took in her beauty. He had first noticed how she acted when they first met – it hadn’t been one of the awkward situations where she said ‘I’m sorry’ just because it was what she had to do… she had honestly meant it. He noticed that before he even took in her looks. Even if she hadn’t been beautiful, he was sure he’d still be as crazy for her as he was at the moment, standing there like a total goof.

“You never answered the question, by the way,” The nurse said as she stopped spinning and glanced at him with an innocent smirk across her face. Walking over next to the drummer of The Academy Is…, she leaned against the side of the bridge and glanced up at the stars. “Why did you choose New York City, even if it was where one of your good friends died just a few weeks ago?”

It was now or never, he decided.

“Because…” He took a deep breath. He had to say it now or he feared he would never build up the courage to say it. She deserved to know how he felt, and he couldn’t keep it in any longer. “Because I wanted to see you,” He said softly, not daring to look her in the eye. He simply just stared over at the other people walking as he continued. “Out of all the places I could have gone, I wanted to come back here and see you. I really missed you while I was there… and… and I really like you, Nicky… and I completely understand if you don’t feel the same. I’m sure there’s a guy here that you are crazy in love with, but I just thought you should know.”

Nicky didn’t reply, and The Butcher started to get worried. He glanced over, and was surprised to see a large smile on her face as she turned to look at him. “If you really want to know,” She said as she tilted her head, looking him straight in the eyes. “The guy I’m crazy about is standing right next to me,” She said as she wrapped her arms around his neck. “And I wouldn’t want to have it any other way, Mr. Mrotek.”

With that, the drummer leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. Grinning into the kiss, the nurse returned it and pulled him closer to her.

Out of everything bad, something good had to happen. In Andy Mrotek’s life, that good thing had just happened.

Even though Will and Bob didn’t know where Greta, she was in good arms at the moment… or… well… she was about to be.

“Keep the change,” She told the cab driver as she climbed out the back of the yellow taxi in front of a venue in downtown Chicago. Three buses were lined up in front, and it took Greta a moment to recognize her friend’s bus. However, she knew they weren’t in there… they’d be having sound check by now. So, she turned her attention to the three boys in bicycles that she recognized from before. One was driving a bike with the other sitting on the handle bars, and then a tall skinny boy was following behind them on a bike. The one sitting on the handle bars had red hair and was holding something in his hands… was that a gun?

“Come back here!” The red-haired boy yelled, aiming and firing at a creature that was racing along the sidewalk. “Sam, peddle faster!” He said, and the bass player replied, “I’m peddling as fast as I can, Brendan! Stop being so God damn demanding.”

“Will you two stop bickering?” The boy behind them said and Brendan laughed, “This has nothing to do with you, Evan. It’s a fight between me and Sam.” With that, he lifted the be-be gun again and fired towards the squirrel which was making a quick getaway. Sam, deciding to be the ass of the moment, and then jerked the bike to a stop, making Brendan fly forward. Landing on his side, he jumped up and watched Sam and Evan race off, both laughing. “Ass holes!” He called to his band mates.

Greta had walked over at this time, smiling weakly behind a pair of Dior glasses she had borrowed from Ashlee a few months ago. “I see you guys are having fun,” She commented, and Brendan glanced to the side. “They’re just being ass holes,” He said with a soft snicker. “I’ll get my revenge, though. The gun isn’t just to shoot squirrels, you know.” After a moment, he held out his hand. “I’m Brendan.”

“I already know you. We met two weeks back,” Greta said as she slid off the glasses. Brendan grinned as he soon recognized her then. “Hey Greta,” He said. “Sorry, I didn’t recognize you with the big designer glasses covering your face.” Giving her a quick hug, he said, “C’mon, I’ll take you inside. They’re going to be thrilled to see you again… they’ve been asking all day whether you were going to come or not.”

Following the sixteen year old singer inside the venue and into the area where the concert was at, Greta smiled and told him she’d talk to him later and made her way backstage without anyone seeing her. As they were practicing ‘The Great Escape’ at the time, she took a spare microphone backstage and waited. Once they got to the chorus, she started belting the words – she didn’t care if it was off tune or anything. The music stopped and they started to look around to see where it was coming from. As she sang, she had made her way up the metal ladder and was now on the walk way above them.

“You guys should really pay more attention,” She told them with a soft laugh as she dropped a pen from the pocket of her jeans down onto the stage. Looking up, Martin grinned. “Come down here and give me a hug,” He said. She followed orders and within a few seconds found herself in the arms of four males giving her the most meaningful hugs she had ever had in her life so far.

For once, she felt like she belonged. For the first time since Jon’s death, she felt as if something was actually going right.

Alright, I know it’s short, but I have a bat mitzvah to go to. I’ll add more later in the next week!

Until then, xoxo.