I smiled when I opened my eyes. I felt completely relaxed, seeing Charlie’s face inches from mine. She was lying on her back, so I leaned over, planted a small kiss on her cheek, and snaked an arm around her waist, snuggling closer to her. She stirred slightly, but it was only to adjust against me again. I smiled softly.

Before I closed them, my eyes darted to the digital clock on my bedside stand. It was noon, and we had to get to the venue in a few hours, which meant we probably should be waking up soon. And I’d much rather wake up peacefully than have Mike crush our rib cages in thirty minutes.

I sighed and curled my hand against her hip, slipping it under her shirt and tracing her chill-bumped skinned with the palm of my hand. Charlie sighed softly and nuzzled her head against mine before her eyes fluttered open.

“Hi,” she whispered.

“Hey,” I said coolly. I ducked my head and kissed her lips, my hand still flattening against her stomach and sides. “How did you sleep?” I murmured against her mouth.

“Great,” she whispered, rolling over on her side so she was facing me. I grinned and pecked her lips a few times.

“Good,” I said, gripping her waist and moving my lips to her jaw.

“Vic,” she giggled when my hand traveled lower on her body. “If you’re trying to turn me on, it’s working,” she whispered. I grinned mischievously but straightened my face out as I pushed her back with a growl. She gasped slightly before she pressed her lips harder on to mine, grabbing a handful of my full of hair on the back of my head.

“Ahem,” I raised my eyebrows and we both froze. Her hands relaxed against my head so I could turn, groaning at my brother in the doorway. I sighed and collapsed on top of Charlie, shaking my head. “By all means, continue,” he snickered.

I reached to my right and grabbed a pillow, chucking it in his direction. “Pain in the ass,” I muttered. He chuckled and stared at the pillow that hit the floor before reaching him—a weak attempt on my part. I sent him a death-glare before turning back to Charlie, nuzzling my head into her neck.

“Rise in shine, love birds,” he sang.

“He’s still here?” I mumbled. Charlie giggled and played with the hair on the side of my head.

“I heard that. And I shall not leave until you awaken. I made breakfast and we have to go soon. Chop, chop!” he said with an excess amount of enthusiasm. I sighed but nodded, knowing he was right—as much as I wanted her right now, we didn’t really have time. I kissed her neck quickly and rolled away, running my fingers through my hair as my feet planted on the ground. I picked up a pair of grey sweatpants and slipped them on over my boxers, stretching out my limps afterword.

I punched Mike in the gut, mumbling, “cock block,” under my breath. He groaned and I heard Charlie laugh as she got out of bed, too.

“Love me. I made you guys pancakes,” Mike said with pride in his tone. “We have to go in… three hours! So no dilly-dallying,” he ordered. I chuckled at his silliness.

“Look at you being responsible for once,” I smirked.

“You’re too kind.”

“Hey, we got those tickets and stuff to the girls from the diner, right? Zoe and Chloe?” I remembered.

“Yup. We worked it out with the venue and they put them on the guest list,” Mike confirmed.

“Oh, right,” I nodded. Most people assumed because we were the band, we had the ability to invite any one we wanted to the shows. But that really wasn’t the case; we had to clear it with the venue first and make sure there was room. Bands were only allowed a previously-determined amount of guests, otherwise the venute would lose money and never invite us back. I knew it wasn’t going to be a problem, though, because Charlie and Jess had been the only people on our guest list back when we invited the other two girls.

“It’s going to be an awesome show!” Mike sang, dancing to the griddle that the pancakes were cooking on. I chuckled and shook my head, sitting down at the table and letting him do his thing—he was acting especially hyper today, and it was kind of hilarious.

As I sat down, I felt someone’s hands—Charlie’s—hold both sides of my head, steadying it as she kissed the back of my head. I smiled and turned to her as she sat down next to me.

“Nice bald spot,” she winked. My hands immediately shot up to my messy hair, ruffling up to hide the spot while I shot her a dirty look.

“This is why I wear hats,” I grumbled. She chuckled and rested her head on my shoulder. “I missed you,” I whispered.

“I missed you, too,” she squeezed my thigh in affection. “Did you guys have fun, though?” she asked, lifting her head up and smiling at both me and Mike.

We nodded furiously. “Yes!” Mike cheered. He set down plates in front of me and Charlie, two pancakes on each.

“Ah, you’re serving us, too? Thank buddy,” I grinned, picking up my fork with my left hand because my right was a little preoccupied, protectively resting on Charlie’s inner left thigh. Mike started to ramble on about tour stories while my mind wandered off. I could hear Charlie laughing and occasionally saying things back to Mike but I wasn’t really listening. I was just glad that they were getting along. Subconsciously, my hand slid up her leg while it also pulled her closer to me.

“Keep that up and you’re going to make me fall out of the chair,” she mumbled so Mike didn’t hear. I grinned mischievously and gave her leg a squeeze, causing her to giggle softly and look up at me. I grinned sheepishly at her.

"Hands to yourself, Fuentes," she murmured with a small smirk. I grinned wider, patted her leg, and removed my hand from her leg so I could devour the pancakes in front of me. Starving and excited to have a home-cooked breakfast, I scarfed them down quickly. "Dang," Charlie laughed. "You must have been hungry."

I smirked and leaned down, placing my lips at her ear. "Still am," I growled. Her breath slightly hitched and I chuckled. She traced her fingers along the top of my leg, and I grabbed her hand with mine, holding it tightly.

"Well!" I heard Mike chime, his voice in the distance as I stared at Charlie desirably. "It's getting rather hot in here. I'm going outside to smoke," he said with a light laugh. I ignored him, and, once I heard the sliding back door open and close, I turned to her, a grin never leaving my face.

“Can I help you?” she asked quietly, her face serious but suppressing a smile.

“I don’t know, can you?” I smiled. She rolled her eyes and turned to face me, too, our knees touching. I placed my hands on her knees and slid my hands up so they were at her hips; then I gripped them and pulled her swiftly over to me. Flustered, she blew her hair out of her face and wrapped her arms tightly around my neck.

“Hi,” she giggled.

“Hi,” I smiled, pulling her even closer and burying my face into her neck. “Agh!” I said into her skin, shaking my head out.

“Vic, stop, that tickles!” she giggled, squirming in my lap. I moved my hands from her waist to her lower back, locking my fingers around her. I pecked her neck and pulled away, gazing at her happily. She unwrapped her arms from my neck and touched my face, curling her fingers around my cheeks and forehead, my nose, lips, and I blinked when she brushed them over my eyes.

“What are you doing?” I laughed.

“Your face is so damn cute,” she pouted. I unhooked my hands from behind her and grabbed her hands from my face, holding them both between mine. I grinned at her. I opened my mouth to say something, but I was cut off when I heard the sound of Mike reentering the house.

“Good god,” he groaned. “I expected you two to have gone to a room by now. Not in the kitchen children,” he scolded.

Confused, I looked at Charlie. Then I laughed, seeing why he would think that—she was straddling my lap, we were facing each other in close proximity. “We’re not doing anything Mike,” I laughed, leaning over to rest my forehead on her shoulder. “We’re just sitting.”

“Interesting way to sit,” he mused. I rolled my eyes. “It’s almost two. We have to be—”

“Ah, shit!” I said. I kissed Charlie on the lips quickly before hooking my arms around her and lifting her up with me. I set her down and wiggled my eyebrows at her before I raced back to my room to get ready.

MIKE’S POV

“Don’t mind him. He’s a girl and needs five hours to get ready,” I laughed once my brown-haired brother disappeared into his room.

“He’s so funny,” Charlie laughed, grinning at the spot where Vic had been seconds before.

“Yeah, he’s a character for sure,” I sighed, running my fingers through my hair. “He’s so happy.”

“Yeah…” she smiled softly.

“Are you excited for the show tonight?” I asked to spark a conversation. She nodded.

“It’ll be cool to see you guys play for real,” she said.

“Vic’s excited to show off to you,” I teased.

“I bet he is,” she chuckled.

I scratched the back of my neck. “Yeah,” I mumbled. “I should probably get ready, too. We have to get to the bus and then the venue, do sound check and meet and greets and all of the fun stuff before the show,” I explained. She nodded understandingly.

“Thanks for breakfast, by the way,” she smiled.

“Anything for you guys,” I grinned. “And, uh… thanks for making my brother so happy,” I said awkwardly.

She smiled gently. “He makes me happy, too,” she said softly.

Impulsively, I walked forward and wrapped my arms tightly around Charlie. She was short while I was tall, so I had to bend over a little to hug her. “I don’t think you will, but please don’t hurt him,” I whispered in her ear. I felt her nod.

“I would never,” she promised.

“I know,” I said, pulling away. “I don’t know how to thank you, Charlie. You’re the best thing that has happened to him in a long freakin’ time…” Charlie nodded.

“I can honestly say the same for me. I couldn’t dream of hurting him. I know what he’s been through.”

“I’m just so happy to see him to alive, y’know? I missed him so much,” I grimaced and looked down at the floor, as memories from our not too distant past flooded into my brain.

“Are you okay, Mike?” she spoke up after a few minutes. I looked back up to see her staring at me intently.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, I see how happy you are about your brother being okay again. But I see something else too. Don’t forget about yourself, Mike.”

I nodded slowly. “Yeah…” I breathed. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

“You’re lying, but that’s okay,” she concluded. I chuckled.

“Yeah, you’re right,” I admitted. “I’m half okay. I still think about things everyday. I’m happy that things have calmed down but I’m still worried.”

“Worried?”

I nodded. “Worried that something bad will happen again.”

She bit her lip and nodded. I closed my eyes and sighed. “Sorry. Enough with the heavy,” I let out another shaky breath but opened my eyes, smiling widely.

“Go get ready, Mike,” she reminded me, smiling happily and nudging me back.

“Right, yes,” I gave her a thumbs up, but I cursed when I accidentally extended my fist out too far and too aggressively, not realizing she was standing so close and knocking her in the face. “Shit, Charlie!” I hissed. “Fuck, fuck,” I muttered, stepping forward and holding her face tenderly in my hands.

She whimpered a little but forced a smile. “That’s twice now, you douche,” she laughed, bringing her own hand up to her bleeding nose.

“Shit, fuck, I’m so sorry,” I groaned, guiding her to the kitchen sink. I grabbed a towel and wet it, dabbing it on her face. “Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry,” I mumbled as she hissed at the contact.

“It’s fine, honestly, it was an accident,” she said. I still felt horrible though. “But jeez, Mike, if you wanted me gone just say so!” she teased. I groaned though, not being able to find it within me to laugh. “Honestly Mike I’m fine. Relax. I bleed easily,” she shrugged her shoulders, her words making me frown even more and freeze in my place in front of her.

“What?”

“What?” she echoed, furrowing her eyebrows and tilting her head to the side, all the while keeping the towel up to her face.

“Er, never mind,” I shook my head, shaking the thought out.

“Okay,” she shrugged her shoulders.

“God, Vic is going to murder me,” I groaned.

Charlie laughed. “You deserve it, asshole.”

“I’m sorry!” I whined. She patted my arm kindly and smiled.

“It’s fine, Mike. I’m just kidding. See?” she pulled the towel from her face. “I think it stopped bleeding,” she said. She dabbed her face a few more times and nodded as her actions confirmed her words. “I should probably go clean up now,” she said.

“Yeah… do you need any help? Oh God Vic is going to have a heart attack!”

“He’ll get over it,” she laughed. “Don’t beat yourself up, Mike.”

I grinned. “Yeah, why would I? That’s what you’re for.”

She laughed and rolled her eyes, punching me in the shoulder. “Now go get ready,” she pointed to the stairs that led up to my room. I nodded and obeyed, ruffling her hair, double checking her face to make sure she was okay, and then running up the steps, taking three at a time like the coward I was. I needed a good enough head start just in case Vic tried to have a go at me for punching Charlie in the face—little did he know this was the second time that has happened.

I busted into my room, sighing dramatically and falling backwards on my bed. I took out my phone and held it over my head, scrolling through Twitter. I smiled at some of my mentions but I didn’t respond to any—that would create a frenzy, and I wasn’t in the mood to disappoint fans right now. I exited out of the app and went to lock my phone, but as I did so it slipped out of my fingers, smacking me in the face.

“Fuck!” I cried out, groaning as I sat up and holding my face. “Serve me right, I guess,” I said to myself, holding a t-shirt up to my nose to stop the small trail of blood down my face. As I did that, I walked around my room, gathering clothes to wear tonight. After a few minutes, I tossed my t-shirt aside, washed my face with water, and scrunched up my face to make the soreness pass. I saw the time, seeing that we had to go to the bus soon. I slipped on black skinny jeans, my love before glory tank top, and my all black vans. I tossed on a hat and stretched my limbs out before dashing out of my room.

“Oh my God, seriously!” I groaned when I collided into someone.

“Quite abusive today, are we?” Vic snickered from the ground. I rolled my eyes and offered my hand, yanking him up.

“What are you doing?”

“I was just coming to get you. We have to leave soon. Once Charlie finishes getting ready. She’s hurrying but it’s taking a few extra minutes as she has a nice looking bump on her nose,” he narrowed his eyes at me. I scratched the back of my neck nervously. “And so do you. Did she do this?” he laughed, touching my nose.

“I wish. It was my fucking phone,” I explained, walking down the stairs with him. Vic laughed out loud, trailing behind. Charlie was in the kitchen, sitting on the counter and swinging her dangling legs when we got there.

“Hey cutie,” Vic smiled the second he spotted her, going up to her, placing his hands on her hips, and kissing her nose. She grinned and hopped off of the counter, and I watched as their hands immediately intertwined. I frowned a little as a weird feeling soared through me.

Jealousy?

“Ready, Mikey?” Vic asked. I nodded and walked with them out to the car. Vic, like the gentleman he was, opened the passenger seat for her. Charlie, like the sweet girl she was, politely denied and settled into the backseat, letting Vic and I sit in the front. She sat in the middle seat behind us, leaning forward with her elbows on the center console, her head resting on her fists. I turned around and swung my right arm, stopping short to scare her into thinking that I was going to punch her face. She didn’t even flinch.

“You’re good,” I approved, sinking into the passenger seat while Vic drove. He was tapping his fingers on the wheel and humming to himself. “You didn’t even flinch.”

“I’m used to boys hitting me,” she stuck her tongue out at me playfully, and I rolled my eyes. Although, something in her words struck me—even if she was hiding it, I sensed some other meaning behind her teasing tone and it really bothered me.

“You’re never going to let this go, are you?” I groaned, moving on.

“Nope!” she said, popping the ‘p’ with a satisfied smirk on her face. I sighed and turned away.

A few minutes later, we arrived to the warehouse that the buses were stored in. Vic exited the car swiftly, opening the door for Charlie and grabbing her hand again, as if they couldn’t bear to be apart. They probably couldn’t.

I trailed behind them as we walked towards our bus, watching the pair carefully. They stood so close to each other, as if her left arm was connected to his right arm. Even his head was slightly tilted in her direction. I could tell how crazy Vic was for Charlie, just by looking at them together. It made me so happy for him.

I took out a cigarette from my pocket and lit it quickly, taking a long drag and exhaling a swirl of smoke.

I stared at them again, seeing Vic’s arm around her tiny waist, holding her close to his side as he talked to Jaime and Tony. Jaime had Jess with him, and I imagined that Tony’s new girl—Faith—was going to be at the show later, too. I grimaced and greeted the guys briefly before disappearing into the bus.

“Hey, no smoking in here,” Casey scolded, although he had a cigarette hanging loosely in between his lips, as well. I smirked and flipped him off.

“Get out of here, roadie,” I teased. I sunk into the leather couch and tilted my head back, blowing out another cloud of smoke, watching as it twirled up into the atmosphere above me.

“Gotcha!” I heard a snap, and I turned my head to see Adam next to Casey, camera out. I rolled my eyes. “I should have known you kids would be in here.”

“Bus call!” I heard our tour manager yell from outside. I knocked on the near window to indicate my presence, pulling the “asshole rock star” card and not moving from my spot. I took another deep breath of my cigarette, reveling in the relief it gave me. I knew we didn’t have to do anything today—all of our shit was already packed up from last night—so it wasn’t that big of a deal. A few minutes later, the guys and a few others climbed into the bus. I didn’t realize my eyes were closed until I felt the cushion to my left sink in. I peeked my eyes open to see Vic.

“You okay buddy?” he asked quietly. I nodded, stubbing out my cigarette on the tray we had out and slipping the half finished stick back into my pack. He smiled happily and stood up, leaving me in my peace and returning to I guess wherever Charlie was. I gazed over at him, right in time to see him pull her into his lap. He had the biggest smile on his face—it has been so long since I’ve seen him so happy that I almost forgot what it looked like. He actually had life in his eyes.

I shifted my gaze back in front of me, staring at my face that was reflected off of the black television screen.

Charlie’s previous words rung in my ears. Don’t forget about yourself.

My eyes flickered back to the happy couples behind me—I felt happy for them, for my brother, but when I looked back at myself, my mouth was curved into a slight frown. That was when I realized that I was happy for them, but not myself—that was when I realized Charlie was right: I had forgotten about myself. I had been so caught up in my brother’s happiness—and don’t get me wrong, when he was happy I was happy, too, but that only went so far—that I forgot about my own.

I saw Jaime tickling Jess to death and Vic whispering things into Charlie’s ear. Tony was smiling wickedly at his phone and even Casey and Adam—the only other people on the bus—were basically flirting with each other, jokingly, of course, but they were together, happy, having a good time, nonetheless.

I looked down at my quiet phone and the empty space next to me, frowning again—where was my person?

Notes

Yayyy an update! \o/
Does that look like a person cheering because I think it does

Or a person drowning but let's not get crazy here

Okay anyway yay an update
It's sort of a filler, and hopefully the next one will be out in good time! Sorry it's been a few weeks--oh I just realized christmas break is soon, my family and I have to drive 15 hours from NJ to GA in a few days bc all our family lives there, so I probably won't be updating again very soon, but I'll still be writing (this goes for all of my stories, too).

And I snuck a Mike POV in there. It's been a while.

Let me know what you think :)