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Alaina's POV
My head hurt pretty bad. I didn't know if I was seeing things, but I assumed not. Everyone watched Jason and Tre knocking the shit out of each other. Billie and Mike stood up and ran over and broke it up. I couldn't tell, but I thought Tre's nose was bleeding. Maybe the blood from Jason was on Tre, but who knows.
"Dude, what the fuck?" Tre asked, holding his nose. So I guess it was from him. Jason looked like he wanted to finish what he started. Tre looked the same, only less deadly.
"You fucking knew it, Tre, and you still messed with her! I've liked her longer than you have!"
"Knew what? You're fucking retarded!"
Jason looked at me, then to Billie Joe, then to Mike, then back at me.
"Fine? You wanna hear me say it? I LOVE YOU ALAINA REGINA PRITCHARD! I have since the day I met you." He turned to all 3 guys. "And all 3 of them fucking knew it." Then he looked Tre right in the eye. "I bet you just started liking her cuz I do. You're a fucking asshole, Frank Wright."
Tre liked me? Awesome! If I didn't love Jason as a friend and hate to see this fight, I would be a lot happier now.
"Thanks a lot, Jason. See if I fucking tell you anything ever again!"
"When did Jason find out? Was it before me? I thought I was the only one that knew!" Billie questioned Tre. Tre looked pissed, as did everyone, at Billie asking a question like that at this time.
"Tre liked Alaina?" Mike asked, staring at Tre, Jason and I.
"Yeah, but he said not to tell you or Adie or Tre. But I guess he told Tre."
"Why couldn't I have known?"
"Oh come on, Mike. You tell me what I can't figure out about you!" I said, putting my hands on my hips.
"Good point. But now, it doesn't matter. It's like your dream came true, Lane!" He snapped, sarcastically.
"Mike, will you stop being a fucking asshole for like, 5 minutes!" Adrienne snapped. Tre turned to me.
"Alaina, look, I like you, like, a lot. I don't know if it's love because I've never really liked anyone. I'm not gonna hate you if you pick Jason, but I wish you wouldn't."
Oh crap, was I supposed to choose now? I heard footsteps coming down the steps.
"Mike, Alaina, it's 9. Your friends need to go home. It's a school night." our stepdad, Vinnie, said. I hated him so much. He left and went back upstairs. For once in his existence, he was good for something.
"Well, we'll talk to you guys tomorrow. Keep out of trouble." Adrienne said and grabbed Billie's hand. Tre followed them out and Jason just stood there, staring at me.
"Are you gonna..." He asked.
"Gonna what?"
"Is it him or me?"
Fuck. I thought it was over.
"I don't know, Jason, honestly. Give it a while. You're an amazing person, but I can't choose. Especially not tonight, having this bomb dropped on me."
He nodded and walked off. I felt my face start to get warm and a lump was forming in my throat. Before I knew it, my eyes were leaking like a fountain. I felt an arm around me.
"It's OK." I heard and felt myself pulled into a hug. I knew who it was.
"Why am I crying, Mike?"

"I don't know. It could be because the man of your literal dreams just told you he liked you the way you like him and one of your really good friends confessed even deeper feelings and you don't know what to do."
I couldn't tell if he was serious or sarcastic. After a few minutes we went back upstairs and got ready for bed. We said our goodnights and went to bed.

Mike's POV

Saturday night
The tension between Jason and Tre had not gotten any better. It didn't get worse, either, but the fact that our drummer and backup guitarist hated each other wasn't good. We were all gathered backstage, the girls were in the crowd already. I was playing with the strings on my bass.
"So, we have a gig tonight. I'm expecting that a drumstick doesn't accidently hit Jason in the head tonight like it did at practice on Thursday?" Billie asked, staring at Tre.
"I don't know, man, I mean, they slip out of my hand so easily and Jason's head is so huge that they just seem to magically whack him!"
"Tre!"
"Billie!" The way he said it made me laugh and got me into trouble.
"What's so fucking funny, Mike?" Jason asked.
"Nothing..." I said and went back to playing.
"Guys, don't take this out on me or Mike. If anyone started anything, Jason did." Billie responded, turning to Jason. "You didn't have to attack him. He didn't do anything."
"Mike or Tre?"
"Well, both, but the one that you started this hostility with...Tre. Yeah, he kissed Alaina, but it was a game. Just because he knew you liked her doesn't mean that's the reason why he liked her in the first place. And if she chooses one over the other, that doesn't mean one of you is better than the other. I know Alaina used to like me and so did Adrienne. It doesn't mean that as a friend I like her more than Alaina, but I just felt more romantically attracted to her."
"Or sexually," I chimed in.
"That, too," Billie agreed.
"I don't want to think about him touching her!" Jason said, snarling when he said 'him' and looked at Tre.
"Well, you're gonna be seeing it a lot when she picks me!"
"Guys, stop it! Just let it go for a while. Do you know she broke down crying when you guys left the other night? She feels like she has to choose. If you keep pressing it on her, she's gonna say no to both of you and all 3 of you guys are gonna be hurt." I said, defending my sister.
"You're actually defending her? Good job, Mikey!" Billie said, slapping me on the back. I was pretty sure he was serious.
Tre and Jason both muttered a fine and there was a knock on the wall in the doorway. The dude told us they were ready for us to play.
After the show, we met up with the girls and got our equipment together. We shoved it all in Billie's mom's van and met up in the front.
"You guys were awesome!" Rory said and hugged me. I wondered if she would want to re-create what we did a few nights ago, but I wasn't gonna bring it up right now. Especially not in front of them.
"Thanks. We usually do something afterward. You think you can come with us?" I asked. She looked at the clock on her cell phone. It was only about 7, from the way it looked out here.
"Sure, let me make a call." She said and walked off. I really hoped she could.
"Damn Mike, you're moving fast on this one!" Alaina snapped.
"What?"
"OH come on. It's so obvious you're in love with her."
"I am not! I told you, I don't know her that well."
"YOU LOVE HER!" Billie yelled, holding a bottle in his hand.
"Hey, spread the wealth!" Alaina said, motioning towards the bottle. Great, I get to take 2 drunkards home tonight. Billie handed the bottle over and she arched her head back.
"Slow down, Lane. Save some for the rest of us." Adrienne said, motioning for the bottle next.
After her turn, I grabbed it next. Who wants to be the only sober person with all those crazy drunks? I don't know why he brought whiskey, but I needed it right now.
"Has anyone seen Tre or Jason?" Billie asked a few minutes later.
"Oh fuck. No! This sucks! They could kill each other this time!" Alaina yelled. She was starting to get freaked again, like she did the other night when everyone left. I don't know why she got panicked so badly. I hugged her and tried to get her to calm down. Rory finally came back.
"She said it's fine. What's wrong with Lane?"
"We can't find Tre or Jason. And if I hear correctly, I just heard police sirens." I said. Everyone turned around to see a cop car coming our way.
"OH FUCK, THROW THE BOTTLE BACK IN THE VAN!" Billie yelled, grabbing it from me and running towards the van. One of the officers came over towards us.
"What's going on here, guys?"
"We just did a show and we're waiting for our friends to come out here so we can go hang out. Is there something wrong, officer?" Billie asked.
"Billie Joe Armstrong? You're not the one in trouble?"
"No, Officer Dan, not this time."
"OK, well we just got a call from the club owner that 2 of your men were in a fight."
"Jason...Tre...I knew one of us should've been watching them. What are you gonna do to them? Are you gonna use the taser?"
"No, Billie. That was only when you wouldn't stop poking the convicted murderer. I saved your ass with that, though."
"Yeah, I know. But they're just having a fight over a girl. Maybe take them back to the station, scare the shit out of them, call their parents and or legal guardians. It worked for me. See, it wasn't me in trouble tonight!"
The officer laughed. Billie was a bit of a wild man. He had run ins with the police a lot. He never really did anything serious, just knocking over some mail boxes and shit.
"Well, you stay out of trouble, little Armstrong. I'll see what I can do with your friends." The officer said and walked off.
A few minutes later, we watched Jason and Tre being carried out of the building. It was funny, but crazy. They were killing Lane and themselves with the fighting. I guess we needed to talk again.
"Wow. I think I might have seen more in a week with you guys than I had seen in a year back home..." Rory said, awestruck as she watched Jason and Tre try and fight the officers and then be shoved into the cruiser.
*
Rory's POV
"Wow. I think I might have seen more in a week with you guys than I had seen in a year back home..." I chuckled slightly, but noticing the seriousness of the moment, I stopped. "Guys... If I'm in your way, seeing how two of your friends just got arrested, I could just go home and we can hang tomorrow or something..."
"No, no. It's fine." Mike said. His arm was wrapped around his sister in a comforting way.
Alaina's eyes were glued to the street.
"Lane... You okay?" Billie Joe looked her up and down, trying to figure out what she was thinking. Adrienne smacked him in the back of the head.
"Yo! No checking out Lane, all right?" She snapped.
"Hey, hey! That hurt... And I'm not checking her out, just trying to figure her out, yaknow?" Billie Joe lowered his voice at the last part of what he said. "I only have eyes for you, m'darlin'." He gave her a quick kiss on the lips.
"Never speak like that again and we'll call it even."
"Fine by me." Billie stretched and casually placed an arm around Adie's shoulders.
"So. Where to?" Mike asked.
"I dunno." Lane shrugged.
"That helps." Mike rolled his eyes.
"And Mike the loving, caring brother has now returned to the darkness." Adrienne said flatly.
"You know, you could be a little more helpful!" Lane snapped and stomped away. I wanted to follow her, to be a friend to her, but my feet wouldn't move. I looked towards Mike. He was leaning against the car, one hand massaging his temples, the other just hung limply at his side. Billie Joe and Adrienne didn't say a word. I opened my mouth as if to say something, but clamped it shut. With my fists clenched, I walked quite quickly towards the wall of the building and slid down it, pulling my knees up to my chest, and wrapped my arms tightly around them.

[one week later]
I sat, alone, in my house. My boom box was cranked with a She Wants Revenge cd playing over and over. I mouthed the words to the songs, seated on my bed in my room. It was a Saturday, and I was doing nothing. Usually by now I'd be hanging with the guys, but I hadn't heard from them all day.
There's been a lot of tension in the group lately. Tre and Jason are continuously bugging Alaina every day for an answer. They won't leaver her alone, it's sickening. It also means that Tre and Jason have not come to terms as of yet. Alaina won't speak to her brother anymore, not after how he treated her the week before. It's awkward in the group since everyone seems to be hating everyone else.
Who knew all this could come from a simple game of Spin the Bottle?
Note to self: Never play Spin the Bottle with those guys again.
So when my cell phone rang, I hardly was expecting it to be one of them. Though, I could barely hear it over the loud music. I would never have noticed if the phone wasn't resting on my stomach, since I put it there in case my grandparents called to say they'd be coming home soon. I looked at the caller i.d. It was Mike. I skipped over and paused the cd, flipping open the phone.
"Hello, Mikey." I greeted in a sing-song voice. I was a little too happy. I had no human contact all day and it was already three in the afternoon. Yeah, not late, but honestly, I was getting bored.
"Rory, is it all right if I go over to your house? I got into a humongoid fight with my step dad, and I think he'll murder me if I remain in the house any longer." Mike said quickly.
"Sure, why not? No one's home anyway. You know where I live?" I asked. Of course he didn't, he'd never been here.
"No."
"Euh... Well... Meet me at the park." I said. He thanked me and hung up. I darted through my room, throwing on a pair of form fitting jeans, a studded belt, a black tank top with three skulls on it [one pink, one yellow, one blue] and my black Vans. I ran a brush through my hair, and pulled it back into a pony tail before darting out the door.
About twenty minutes later, I found Mike sitting on a bench at the park. I plopped down beside him and sighed.
"Hey, Rory." He said flatly.
"Hey... So, what's the problem?" I asked. I kept my head facing the ground, but I looked at him through the corners of my eyes.
"Everything. This past week has been brutal."
"Tell me about it." I smirked.
"Anywho, I just got into a small fight with my dad, which is why I wanted to leave my house. Oh! Of course I wanted to see you anyway, but I dunno." He laughed lightly. "Alaina's really down."
"Really? How is she?" I asked with great concern.
"Not too great. She's been holed up in her room all day so far. On Saturdays she likes to watch tv till noon."
"Heh. I just think the Jason and Tre situation is getting to her head. Do you know if she's made a decision yet?" I asked, turning my head to look at him.
"She hasn't told me..." He shook his head and was silent for a long moment. "Hey, I wanna show you something. Follow me."
I nodded and stood with him. He walked towards the lake which was in the center of the park, then over to a large clump of trees, which was slightly miniature-forest like. He then brought me to the other side of that, where I bet no one else had gone before, to a small clearing with a stream running through it which ran off into the lake.
"Wow." I grinned widely, then turned back. "It's so pretty here."
"Yeah... I like to come here to think."

Adrienne's POV
I placed an arm around Alaina and smiled lightly. The poor girl had a tough decision to make, one that could ruin her friendship with whomever she didn't choose. Jason and Tre told her that whoever she didn't choose would remain friends with her, but we all know differently. It would be mightily awkward afterwards. I had decided to come over to Alaina's house to try and help her feel better, and she wasn't doing too well.
"I don't understand why they want me to choose so badly. I mean, honestly." She groaned and rolled onto her side. I was sitting on the floor of her room, my back pressed against the side of her bed. She was lying on the floor in front of me.
"Hon, I just think they both care about you very much and can't stand to see you with anyone besides them." I said.
"Thank you Captain Obvious." Alaina rolled back onto her back and sighed. "I know why, it's just I don't understand."
"Boys are stupid, Lane. Get used to it." I joked, and laughed. She side-glanced at me and I stopped. "I thought you were like in love with Tre."
"I do really like him... But I don't want to hurt Jason."
"Then don't choose either. For now. You can have Tre later, but why don't you not choose either of them, just so they'll quit bugging you." I suggested.
"That's stupid. Yet ingenious! I love you, Adie!" Lane jumped up and hugged me tightly.
"Lane...lack of...oxygen...becoming a problem..." I choked out. She let go.
"Oh. Sorry." Lane laughed and smiled for the first time all week.
'I gotta hand it to ya, Adie, you got skills,' I thought to myself.