J.A.C.I.E.'s World (All Time Low Fanfiction | Jack Barakat)

Chapter 8

It had been two weeks since I said goodbye to Jack at the airport and a week and a half since I started producing again. Things were... okay. That's it. That's all they were. It wasn't the end of the world, but it also wasn't the happiest I'd been. It was just normal, really. Well, not normal, this wasn't my normal anymore. Just okay.

I might have done the wrong thing, though. I let work become the one thing that consumed my entire life. During the day, you could find me in the studio. Even on the days I didn't need to come in. Sometimes that just meant I was there working on other random things or trying to write my own music. And in the evenings? Well, then you'd find me at the desk in my bedroom, doing more work on my laptop.

But, hey, it kept me busy.

One Friday evening, though, as I was sitting at said desk, one ear covered by my headphones and one leg up on the chair, Hazel knocked on my door. She popped her head in and smiled at me. I quickly paused the track I was listening to and put the headphones around my neck instead.

"Sarah's trying to get a few people together to go out tonight," she told me, pushing the door open a little further, "wanna join?"

"I don't know," I breathed out heavily, looking over my work again. "Maybe not tonight."

"Come on, you've been working nonstop. Don't you owe yourself a break?"

She was right, but did I want a break? I quite enjoyed my job, even if I spent sixteen hours a day on it.

"It would be a nice distraction..." she added, wiggling her eyebrows.

I mean, that was true. Maybe having some fun with friends could also keep me busy. I could at least give it a go. If it turned out good, then maybe I'd be able to find more time for my friends again.

"Fine," I gave in, putting my feet down on the floor and pushing the chair away from the desk. "But I'm only having two drinks."

"Sure you will." She grinned back knowingly.

And so, Hazel and I started to get ready to meet the rest of our friends for a night out. Hazel borrowed one of my black bralettes while I put on a short black dress with a halter neckline. We sang along to songs loudly as we curled each other's hair and did each other's makeup. There were even a few preparatory drinks included, but it was nothing too crazy.

It didn't take long until we found ourselves in West Hollywood, ready to face the night. We ended up in a club with bright neon lights, a dance floor that lit up, and pounding music. The perfect recipe for distraction.

The night started off innocently enough. I had a colourful cocktail in my hands, trying to listen to a story Sarah was telling us. It was hard with how loud our surroundings were and with how inviting the dance floor looked. But with our drinks empty and the dance floor ready, we pushed forward and started dancing. The beat pumped through us and we sang along with every song we knew.

For a moment, it finally felt like normal again. Like it was just me and my friends against the world. Like my life hadn't just gone through a whole list of drastic changes in a span of a few months.

As the hours rolled on, my promise to take it easy was washed away with more and more alcohol. I started to lose myself in an alcohol-induced haze. The loud bass of the music reverberated through my bones, and the flashing lights blurred into a kaleidoscope of colours. I was spinning, both physically and emotionally.

Hazel and Sarah tried their best to keep up with me, their laughter mixing with mine as we flowed together with the music. They were my anchors in the club, keeping me grounded. We were having so much fun, throwing all of our worries out of the window for the night.

Yet, the alcohol had its way with me, erasing the boundaries of reason I praised myself so highly for. It whispered lies of invincibility in my ear. And I believed them. Shots piled up, and soon, I was dancing like nobody was watching, oblivious to the world around me.

I'd lost count of how many drinks I had had. But I found myself at the bar again, wanting another one.

"Let me buy you a drink!" somebody loudly asked next to me.

I turned my gaze towards them and saw a guy in a white dress shirt and spiked up brown hair. He was smiling at me, waiting for an answer. With the lights flashing, I was almost transported to the night Jack and I first hooked up.

I shook it off and accepted his offer without thinking. "Sure!"

I don't know what he ended up buying me, but I gladly took it and took him back to the dance floor. We danced together when I was unable to spot Hazel or Sarah or any of our other friends close by. I was becoming reckless, and it was a blast. But as soon as I spotted somebody I vaguely knew, I pawned the guy off on them. At least my morals hadn't been corrupted yet.

Eventually, as the night got darker, my sense of space and time became even more distorted. All the faces around me blurred together, and conversations were no longer easy to follow. All my inhibitions dissolved. I was completely free.

"Thanks guys, I needed this!" I shouted once I managed to make out the contours of Hazel's and Sarah's faces.

"Are you okay?" Hazel asked, her eyes filled with worry and her voice barely audible over the music.

"I've never been better!" I put my hands up in glee, unsure whether I was spinning or if the room was spinning.

I don't know how I got home that night. I remembered stumbling outside, the cold air hitting my face and many eyes on me. There were arms supporting me as I dragged other people along.

That night, I collapsed onto my bed, my ears ringing as I felt invincible.