Unveiling J.A.C.I.E. (All Time Low Fanfiction | Jack Barakat)

Chapter 8

Whenever Jack and I were alone, we liked to make my necklace appear from underneath my shirt. Just to see how it felt. One of us would carefully unclasp it from my neck and drop the two rings into the palm of their hand. The metal would already be warm as we slipped them onto our ring fingers, an intimate secret from the world.

This time, it was dark outside and we were in his bunk. The soft hum of the engine filled the silence as we sneakily put on our rings. Being in the confined space of a tour bus bunk only brought us closer together. The way Jack's golden ring seemed to perfectly melt into his skin always made my heart flutter. In an instant, he became even more attractive with his hair flat, glasses on, and shirt off. That ring was made for him.

"Do you think I should be Jacie Barakat?" I asked while I was laying half on his chest, my hands resting at his collarbone as I fidgeted with my own ring.

He moved his head slightly to look at me, his eyes glancing down at the sparkling gem he had given me. "I think you should do whatever you want with your name. But that sounds beautiful."

"I think I also want to keep Evans, though," I confessed, starting to trace his collarbone and shoulder lightly with my fingertips.

"That's fine too."

"How about I move Evans to my middle names? It will make my name even longer, but it feels right."

"The only thing I want is for you to be happy." He started drawing shapes onto my back through the t-shirt I had stolen from him.

I smiled and rested my head in the crook of his neck. "I think I am. I want you to be happy too."

"Never been happier," his chest sank as he breathed out slowly. "I tend to fall hard. Much harder than I should. But with you, it feels okay."

"Maybe because I do as well?" I laughed gingerly.

"Maybe. I just want you to know I don't regret any of this. Not for a second."

I rolled my head so my chin was now on his shoulder and everything was upright again. "Things feel right, don't they?"

He nodded as he stared up at the ceiling close to our heads. "Which is strange."

"It wasn't exactly the plan."

"No, it wasn't," Jack now chuckled too, his laughter a warm melody that filled the air. "But what if it was?"

"What if it was?" I repeated, considering what his words meant.

He leaned a little closer to me, his voice barely above a whisper. "What if the universe is telling us that this is meant to be? Like everything that has happened has been pushing us together. Seeing you at the office, finding you at your birthday, every shared moment since then."

"Don't go telling me the universe did this, Barakat," I laughed quietly. "We found each other."

After all, if it had been the universe, it wouldn't have made Jack go through ten more years of heartbreak than I did. Or maybe he needed it to be ready for me.

"Maybe you're right," he agreed, a mischievous glint sparking in his eyes, "Barakat."

Hearing him call me by his last name made a warmth glow deep inside me. I leaned up, our lips meeting in a soft kiss. It was a kiss filled with unspoken promises, sealing a commitment. We hadn't decided it yet in that moment, but we were certainly starting to head in the same direction.

As we held each other in that dark bunk, the rest of the bus as quiet as the night sky, we fell asleep.

The next morning, I woke up without Jack by my side. I reached out and grabbed my phone from a little ledge where it had been charging and saw it was almost ten. It wasn't unusual for either Jack or I to leave the bunk if we woke up earlier than the other. It was too cramped to wait for the other to wake up as well.

But, my heart skipped a beat when I noticed my ring still around my finger and the chain very much empty around my neck. The adrenaline rushed through my body as I practically scrambled to remove the sheets that were tangled around my legs and took off my ring. I had to get to Jack before he'd accidentally flash everybody on this bus.

I tried to keep myself calm by telling myself that he wouldn't forget. That he probably took it off and put it down somewhere else because he didn't want to wake me up to put it back on the chain. But I couldn't keep my nerves down with just the thought. I needed the actual visual.

However, when I got out of the bunk, it was already too late. I could hear voices in the front lounge.

"What's up with the ring, man?" Rian's voice asked with a little snicker.

There was a second of silence before Jack feigned innocence. "What ring?"

"That one."

Although I tried to look like I was just walking into the front lounge after I woke up, it felt like I stumbled in there in a panic. Jack was sitting at the table, his left hand holding his phone, showing off his ring to anybody who wanted to see. Rian was standing, his eyes fixated on Jack's hand, and Alex's interest was piqued from another couch.

"Oh, that one!" Jack acted surprised, making quick alarmed eye contact with me. "Just a souvenir, really."

"A souvenir? In the shape of a ring?" Rian raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying the excuse.

I noticed the way Alex's gaze shifted from Rian to Jack, and then flickered between me and Jack. He had this suspicious expression; a bit of worry and a lot of intrigue. But it was nothing like when he caught me and Jack after making pasta. He wasn't piecing things together yet.

Jack continued to lie. We couldn't tell the truth just yet. "Alright, maybe not really a souvenir. Just something I bought."

"Yeah, we were at a thrift store a while ago," I shrugged, surprised by how chill I sounded.

"And you bought a ring at a thrift store?" Rian continued to tease, only this time it sounded like he had believed me. He was teasing about the purchase choice, not the excuse.

"I thought it looked cool..." Jack mumbled with a pout.

"A ring from a thrift store, though?" Alex now joined in, calming my nerves even further.

"I just wanted to try something different!" Jack defended in annoyance. "And now it has good memories attached to it."

"Alright..."

"Seriously, it's just a ring, not a big deal."

I slowly pushed past Rian to get to sit next to Jack. When I finally got there, I slowly grabbed his left hand and held it in my own. We were going to have to hide the ring as soon as we had a moment to ourselves again.