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

Chapter 13

Jack and I stayed behind on the bus one day while everybody else went out to do their own thing. We were in the back lounge after having had some sort of break through. Both of us were sitting on the floor, our backs against the u-shaped couch. My legs were bent over his, which were straight ahead of him. Everybody had tried to get us to come out with them, but we needed a bit of privacy.

We had decided together that I was going to tell my dad that we had gotten married.

It felt right. We weren't fully sure yet that we wanted to stay married, but it seemed less and less like we were going to get an annulment. And I couldn't hide this from my dad forever. He would have to find out at some point. Even if Jack and I decided not to go through with it, he needed to know.

My heart was racing as I searched my phone for my dad's contact. We had been in touch through text almost every day. But we hadn't had a proper phone call in a while. The shows clashed with the times he would be off work. That day was a Saturday, though, and I knew he probably would have been at home.

I tapped on his phone number and brought my phone to my ear. Although Jack was there to support me throughout it all, I decided this conversation had to be semi-private. Jack could still hear everything, but I wasn't going to put it on loudspeaker.

The dialtones beeped for an agonising long time before my dad picked up. "Hey, Jacie! My favourite daughter!"

"Hey!" I responded, rolling my eyes at his comment. "How's everything going?"

"Just came back from dropping Ben off at a playdate. You know Adam, right? Those two have an extreme amount of energy. I'm just glad they're not here to create chaos today."

"Got the house to yourself then?"

"Indeed. A quiet Saturday afternoon," he agreed and went on a tangent. "I recently saw Mrs. Jenkins from next door at the park with Ben. She was wondering where you've been since she hadn't heard loud music coming from the house in a long time. I told her you graduated and are touring right now. She seemed delighted and wanted to congratulate you."

"Well, that's nice of her." I smiled. Mrs. Jenkins had always been such a tolerant neighbour while I wrote songs late into the night.

"Speaking of, how's the tour going?"

"It's been a whirlwind of craziness. But only good things."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. I don't think I ever could have expected all this. There have been so many amazing moments. A few nights ago Alex and I performed our song for the first time and the crowd actually sang along. It was insane."

"Man, I wish I was there to see that."

My gaze fell on Jack who was raising an eyebrow at me. I knew he caught onto my stalling. How couldn't I stall? The last time I confessed about my relationship with Jack, things didn't exactly go that well. By now, he had accepted that Jack and I were together and I didn't want to throw him off again.

I sighed and carefully said, "and some things went differently than expected..."

"Oh? Like what?" my dad asked so casually, unaware of the bombshell I was about to drop.

"Umm..." I had to pick up the courage. I continued to make eye contact with Jack as if that would give me extra strength. "Remember how I told you Jack and I were going to celebrate our anniversary in Vegas?"

"Yeah, you never told me much about it. How was it?"

"Unexpected, to say the least... You know how Vegas is. A few drinks, a few parties... and, well, we ended up getting married."

I closed my eyes tightly as there was a long pause on the other side of the line. I was afraid of the reaction and my body was preparing for the fall out.

"Married?" He repeated. I could practically feel his shock. "You and Jack?"

"Uh-huh." I nodded, still fearing what was to come.

"Jacie..." he sighed deeply. It was hard to tell if his voice was laced with disappointment or concern. "You're so young, why would you do this?"

"I know. It was a bit of an impulsive decision. But it was rooted in something real."

"You know how impulsive decisions can lead to problems later on."

"Of course I know that, but this isn't like you and mom."

Jack watched me closely, his expression barely giving away an emotion. He was listening attentively and put a hand on my lower leg for support. It was nice to have him here for this while my dad doubted everything. Just seeing him in front of me made me want to fight harder for us.

"I just don't want you to make the same mistakes I did," my dad said, still much calmer than the last time.

"And I won't," I countered. It had always been one of my biggest fears to end up like them. "This isn't some whirlwind impulsive romance. Jack and I always make sure we're on the same page. We would have never done this otherwise."

Yet again, there was a silence. I couldn't see him, but I could imagine him rubbing his hand over his face as he tried to process the information he had just gotten to hear. With the insane marriage he had to my mom, I knew that he never wanted me to go through the same shit. If there would be one thing he would be over protective about, it would be this.

But his final conclusion came as a surprise. "I trust your judgement, but marriage is a big thing."

"We know." My lips almost twitched into a smile as I now got to switch over to 'we' instead of 'I'. "We've been taking it very seriously and have been figuring it out together."

There was another beat of tranquillity before he asked, "does he make you happy?"

"Yes."

"Well, it would be nice if I could properly meet him someday."

Now, it started to become hard to hold my smile back. I literally had to bite down softly on my lower lip to prevent it from going too bright too soon. Jack's eyes started twinkling as well, his cheeks turning up with happiness.

"I'm sure he'd love that as well," I agreed.

"Just promise me one thing, Jacie," my dad spoke again, with more determination and less worry this time.

"Of course, what is it?"

"Promise me you'll communicate with each other, no matter what. Marriage can be beautiful, but it also takes work. Talk to each other, lean on each other, and never forget why you fell in love in the first place."

"I promise, dad," I swore as Jack nodded along as well.

We slowly ended our conversation and phone call. It hadn't been an overly positive and excited response, but it had been better than I could have ever asked for. There was relief, a weight lifted off my shoulders. Maybe he'd need some more time to fully accept it, but I knew one thing for sure: that my love for both my dad and Jack would have the space to continue to evolve and grow.

"I think you just got my dad's blessing." I grinned excitedly when my phone showed my lock screen again.

I jumped up and straddled Jack in my exhilaration. He was beaming from ear to ear himself as his hands snuck up to my waist. His fingers lightly grazed my skin as he held me close. Our lips met in a kiss filled with the thrill of being accepted. My hair created a curtain around us, glowing a bright gold.

Our breaths synchronised while my hands found their way to his neck, fingers sliding through his hair. His touch shifted to caress my back, sending electrifying shivers of anticipation down my spine. There was an emotion and desire solely our actions could embody. It was only good that nobody was on that bus with us.