Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5:

About a hour later, we arrived at Taco Bell. I wasn't really that hungry anymore. Andy and I hadn't really talked that much, though his nose had stopped bleeding shortly after leaving Jo's. I didn't know what to say. Maybe an apology on Joseph's part, but how do you apologize to your idol for a bloody nose from your best friend? And Joseph was planning to do more than that the next time he saw Andy. What had gotten into him? The old Joseph would have been happy for me. Maybe he was on drugs?

We ordered our tacos and sat at a booth in the back. I looked at Andy. His nose was starting to bruise a little, but other than that, he looked fine. He was staring at me intently. "What?" I asked.

"Do you really think you should go?" Andy asked me.

"Yeah, I do. Why wouldn't I?"

"Your friend seemed really upset."

"Yeah, I got that from him screaming at me yesterday and then punching you today. He doesn't control me. I understand we're friends, but friends support one another."

Andy sighed. "You have a point. If you're sure this is what you want to do."

"I'm positive."

Andy got up to get our tacos. While he was gone, his iPhone beeped and a text came up. I saw that it was from Juliet, asking him where the Hell he was. Apparently, he hadn't mentioned to his girlfriend that he was driving across the country to pick up another girl. Weird. 

Andy returned a moment later. I slowly unwrapped my food; he was already digging in. "You have a text from Juliet." I said. "You didn't tell her where you were going?"

"You saw that? Yeah, we've been arguing lately. She got her record deal, and I'm usually touring. There isn't a lot of room in between."

"Maybe she's worried."

"Maybe."

"Are you going to tell her where you are?"

"Nah, she'll only say I'm cheating on her."

"Well, I would think so too, if my boyfriend went across the country without telling me, to bring back another girl."

"Listen, I'll tell her. I just--not right now. It's been a long day." End of conversation. 

I ate my taco quietly while I thought. Andy hadn't really told me why he wanted me to go back to California with him. It seemed kind of weird. We had only met once before, and that was on Dr. Phil. "Andy?"

"Yeah?" Andy looked up from his phone.

"Why do you want me to come back to California?"

Andy put his phone down. "Well, when we went to Dr. Phil, they told me that I was your idol. I met you, liked you and your story. We're going to be shooting our new movie soon, so I thought you would want to be a part of it."

"Why didn't you ask me that the other day in the park?"

"I thought you would say no, and I know you're perfect for the part."

I smiled. "I'd be honored to be in your movie."

Andy smirked. "Great."

When we left Taco Bell, Andy said he would drive for a while. Good thing we had a GPS, because Andy said he was no good with directions, and I definitely wasn't. I turned on the radio to one of the two rock stations Tennessee had. They were playing Bullet For My Valentine. I wasn't too fond of them, so I went to the other station. They were playing The Doors. I hated The Doors. I switched the radio off and sighed. I should have thought to bring a book or something. This was going to be a long ride. A long, boring ride.

"Bored?" Andy asked, as if he could read my mind. 

"Only a little." I answered sarcastically.

"Get on your phone and see if there are going to be any good shows in Nashville and we'll make a pit stop."

I smiled. "Sounds like fun." I got on my phone and looked up rock concerts in Nashville, TN. "Falling In Reverse and Sleeping With Sirens are playing tonight."

"Do you wanna go? I haven't seen Ronnie in a while."

"Yeah, that would be great."

"It's settled then." Andy smiled his gorgeous smile. 

The ride to Nashville was an anxious one. Anxious because I was excited. For one, I hadn't been to a concert in a good while. For two, I was with the famous Andy Biersack, who was also friends with Ronnie Radke. Not only that, but I was on my way to California with Andy. My life had done a complete one-eighty. In only a matter of days.

Andy and I made nice conversation. We talked about our favorite colors (his were black and red; mine were black and purple), our favorite animals (we both loved giraffes). We talked about his family and my family (or lack-thereof). And it seemed like only a few minutes before we pulled up to the venue. Andy walked up to the guy in charge of the door, showed him his ID, bought two tickets and we were let inside. Andy went backstage, and I followed. The guys of Falling In Reverse were hanging out, getting their set ready (Sleeping With Sirens were headlining). We walked over. 

"Andy!" Ronnie said. They hugged their guy-ish hug.

"Ronnie, this is Alana."

"Hey." Ronnie said to me.

"Hi." I replied. 

"What are you guys doing here? I thought you were supposed to be back in LA, getting ready for the tour."

"Yeah, I came out here to get Alana."

"Are you and Juliet still together?"

"Yeah. She doesn't really know where I am right now."

Ronnie cocked an eyebrow. "Sounds suspicious."

"That's what I said." I replied with a smirk.

Andy frowned. "Shut up guys."

"Whatever, bro. It's your relationship." Ronnie said to Andy. "Let's rock."

"Want to watch back here or go into the crowd?" Andy asked me.

"Crowd."

"Let's go."

We made our way to the crowd and moshed our way to about the third row. At that point, there were girls being guarded by big guys. I hated that. You should be woman enough to take the beating just like anyone else in the crowd. The beating was the fun part, along with the music, of course. 

Andy and I stood side by side, watching Ronnie and then Kellin sing their hearts out. Afterward, Andy led me outside to Falling In Reverse's tour bus. They were signing autographs. When the fans saw Andy, of course, they wanted his autograph, too. He signed a few, then told them this wasn't his concert and we got on the bus. I sat at the table and Andy sat beside me after getting us each a Coke from the fridge. We didn't say anything until the guys got on the bus with us.

"So, what's the story with you two?" Ryan asked Andy and I.

"There's no story." Andy replied, looking away.

"How did you meet?"

"Dr. Phil."

Ryan burst out laughing. "When did you go on Dr. Phil?" 

"The other day. It aired today, if you want to look it up."

Ryan went and got on his laptop.

"So, have you two hooked up yet?" Ronnie asked when Ryan had gone to his bunk.

"We just met." Andy said as if it were the obvious answer.

"Well, you know her enough to come all the way from California to North Carolina. So, there must be something special about her."

"I don't want to talk about this."

"How about this?" Ronnie handed Andy his phone. The webpage showed Twitter with fans Tweeting how they had just saw Andy Biersack in North Carolina with a new girl. Andy's phone buzzed. I figured it was Juliet. "You should probably answer that." Ronnie had a goofy grin on his face. He thought this was too funny.

"Hey, Juliet." Andy answered his phone and walked back into Ronnie's room, closing the door behind him.

"So, why did he come to get you anyway?"

"He wants me to be in his movie." I stated simply.

"I found it!" Ryan called, running back over to the table and sitting beside me. He pushed play. While they were watching Dr. Phil, I got up to go check on Andy. 

Andy was sitting on Ronnie's bed, his phone was lying beside him and his head was in his hands. He looked pretty distressed. I closed the door behind me and went to sit beside him. I lightly placed my hand on his shoulder. He looked over at me. We were both silent for what felt like forever. Then, I said, "Are you okay?"

"I don't know."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I think Juliet broke up with me."

I put my hands in my lap and clasped my fingers. "This is my fault."

"No, it's not. I'm the one who came out here to get you. What Juliet doesn't understand is that it's only for the movie. We haven't done anything. Rumors spread so quickly."

"You can take me home if you want. And then fly back to California and fix things with Juliet."

"No. We're going to finish what we started." Andy put his arm around me and smiled. "Juliet and I will be fine. She just needs to cool down."

"If you're sure." 

"Yeah, come on."

I followed Andy back out to the other guys. They were still watching Dr. Phil.

"Damn, that's some heavy stuff." Derek said. "I can see why you're leaving."

"Yeah." I replied.

"So, are you sure you guys don't have a thing?" Ronnie asked.

"Yeah. Positive." I said.

"We have to get going guys." The driver came to tell the band.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye." Ryan said dramatically.

"Nice to meet you guys." I said to all of them. They all hugged me and said goodbye to Andy. We got in our car to go find a hotel. 

We drove around for a while, and I realized that I had seen the same building a few times. We were lost.

"Andy?"

"Yeah?" Andy replied.

"Do you know where you're going?"

"Of course."

I smiled. "Then why are we going in circles?"

Andy smiled, then. "Because I have no idea where I'm going."

"Pull over, I'll ask for directions."

Andy glanced at me from the corner of his eye. I figured he would object to asking for directions, but he pulled into a gas station. I got out. "Want anything?" i asked. I only had about ten dollars, but he was driving me across the country. 

"A water." He handed me a twenty. "Get you something." 

"I've got ten dollars, I can buy it."

"If you insist."

I smiled and closed the door. The gas station was pretty rugged. The sign was barely hanging on, and the cement in the parking lot was cracked with fading paint. I walked inside to find that the inside looked just as bad. The paint on the walls was chipped, and everything was unorganized. The clerk behind the counter was laid back in a chair with headphones on. I heard what sounded like rap music blaring from them. 

I walked back to the cooler area. When I got back there, I felt my phone buzz. Why was my mom calling me?

ANDY:

After Alana had gone into the gas station, I tried to call Juliet again. She finally answered. "Hello?" She said impatiently.

"Juliet, please just listen to me."

"Fine."

"I came out here to get Alana because I want her to play Eve Black in the new movie."

"Okay. So then why didn't you just fly back to California, instead of driving back together?"

"Well, she's been through a lot and I thought it would be good for her."

"Good for her? What about your girlfriend? I wanted to spend some time with you before you left on tour."

"I know, we can still spend time together."

"No, it's done. We're done. This was the last straw Andy."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. I couldn't believe this was happening. "Juliet, please."

"I'll still do my role in the movie, but after that, I'm done with you."

"All of this because I'm driving back to California?"

"No. I heard rumors that you were cheating on me before you even left."

"You're always with me. How can I cheat?"

"It doesn't matter. I'm done. Goodbye Andy."

I heard the dial tone and knew that it was over for good.

ALANA:

"Hello?" I answered the phone cautiously.

"Alana? Where are you?" Mom sounded...angry?

"I'm going to California."

"With who? That boy we met on Dr. Phil? Joseph told me about him."

"Sense when do you care about anything Jo has to say? And sense when do you care what I do? You practically disowned me, remember?"

"I still love you, Alana. Come home. Now."

"No way. I'm of age. I can do what I want. And I want to go with Andy to California."

I hung up and went to pay for Andy's water. The guy took off his headphones and looked at me questioningly. He rang up the water and I handed him my only ten dollar bill.

"You're that girl from Dr. Phil, right?" He asked.

"Yeah, I am."

"I heard you talking about going to California with Andy? Andy Biersack?"

"Yeah."

"Can you get his autograph for me?"

"You can go out and get it yourself. After you tell me how to get to the nearest hotel."

"Okay. Go straight that way and then make a left at the first red light. It's on the corner."

"Thanks."

The guy followed me out to the car. I got in and he knocked on Andy's window. Andy looked pretty stressed. He signed an autograph and then sped out of the parking lot. I handed him his water.

"Thanks."

"My mom called me." I said.

"What did she say?"

"She told me to come home. Joseph told her about what we were doing."

"Do you want to go back."

"No." I replied instantaneously.

"Good." Andy smiled, but I could tell something was wrong.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He tried to look happy, but I wasn't buying it.

"I can tell something is wrong. It's okay if you don't want to talk about it."

"No..It's Juliet. She thinks I've been cheating on her before I even left California. She said that after the movie, we're done for good."

"I'm sorry. We're both losing people for this trip. Do you feel it's worth it?"

Andy thought for a second. "Yeah. I don't know why, but I feel like we have a connection. I can just talk to you without it being weird. You understand."

I smiled a little. "I feel the same way about you."

We park at the hotel. The man at the front desk said there were only rooms with one bed. I looked at Andy. "We can get separate rooms if you want." He said.

"No, it will cost too much." I looked back to the guy. "We'll take one."

Back in the room, I took a quick shower and came back to find Andy standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. I gave him a weird look. "What are you doing..?" I asked.

"I don't know. Where do you want me to sleep? In this chair?" He seemed like the idea of sleeping in that small chair was distasteful.

"You can sleep with me. Just know this, Biersack...I hog the blankets." I smiled and climbed into bed. 

"Well then, Mrs. Black, I think we have a problem." Andy climbed in beside me. "You see, I too am a cover-hog."

I started laughing. "Oh, I think you should be kind to the lady and let her have all the covers."

"I'm no gentleman." Andy replied, jerking the covers toward him.

I scoffed jokingly. "To the chair!" 

"No!" Andy threw the blankets back at me. I laughed and we settled in. He turned off the lamp on the table beside him. 

"Goodnight Andy."

"Goodnight Alana."