That Girl

Chapter One

2 years ago

"Emmie! Are you almost ready?" Vic called, standing outside the bathroom door with his arms folded across his chest.
"I'm almost done! Give me a minute!" The girl in question called back, fed up with her brother's constant nagging.
"I've given you too many minutes! They're waiting for us at the studio, we're late!" The older said with a sigh, causing Emmie to roll her eyes and open the door.
"I'm done, we can go." She huffed, folding her arms across her chest as they headed downstairs. She then slipped her shoes on at the door, and walked outside with her older brother.

"You know, you didn't have to dress up. It's not a fashion show. Just a recording." Vic chuckled, playfully mocking his sister as they pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road. Emmie rolled her eyes, fidgeting with the oversized camouflage shirt that hung off of her small frame. The sleeves were rolled up to her elbows, and underneath she wore a simple white camisole along with some ripped black jeans.
"This isn't me dressed up!" She protested, to which Vic rolled his eyes as he slowed down for a stop light up ahead.
"Dressed up for someone who's worn leggings and hoodies for the last three days, hoodies that aren't even hers, may I remind you—" he began to go off on a rant, causing Emmie to turn the radio on and roll her eyes in a similar fashion.
"You may not remind me. You may only drive and be quiet." She mumbled softly, leaning her head against the car window as she gazed at the world passing her by.

The younger girl tapped her foot to the song playing in the background, looking fed up as she normally did. Though, she didn't always feel that way. More often than not, she only looked that way because that's just how her face looked. That was always fun to explain to people who remarked at her resting expression. Anyway, onto the main subject. Why was Emmie suddenly putting effort into her appearance?

Well, that's because the band weren't just recording by themselves with a producer and sound engineer or whoever else was there. They were recording with someone else. Who was that? None other than Kellin Quinn himself. Of course, Emmie had met him before as it was no secret that Vic and Kellin were good friends. However...ever since she had first seen him, she got this funny feeling in her stomach. Like...butterflies. Embarrassing right? Emmie liked Kellin. Yes, she 'liked' him. Even more embarrassing to admit that to herself, especially seeing as he now had a kid and a girlfriend. He'd probably marry her now, that's how these things go, right?

"Hey, Em? You okay? We're here." Vic said, nudging his younger sister with a curious look on his face.
"Oh—Yeah, Yeah. I'm fine. Let's go." She said quickly, opening her door to get out as she kept her head down to hide her now slightly flushed complexion. Why is she embarrassed? Why is her body turning against her? He didn't even know what she was thinking about! Or did he...? No, of course not!

As usual, she stuck close to Vic's side as they headed into the building. She always preferred for him to do the talking and the leading when they went to the studio to record, seeing as she wasn't familiar with all of the people that worked there. Emmie wasn't as cocky and confident as she would put out. However, they didn't have to go far before they got to the recording studio they'd be using today, and as soon as they walked in, there was Kellin.

"Hey guys! Nice of you to show your faces." Kellin teased, causing Vic to come back with something witty then go off to talk to the others to see what was going on.
"Hey, Em, I like your jacket. Where d'you get it?" He asked, Emmie taking a moment to respond as she was too lost in the older boy's features to be able to formulate words. God, he was pretty.

"Oh! Uh—a thrift store, I think...it was that one not far from the house—" She stuttered, internally cursing herself. Hopefully he didn't notice. If he did, he didn't mention it at least. Thank god.
"Cool! You go thrifting, then? I've heard it can be fun, but I have this thing about wearing other people's clothes...I don't know, it seems like it'd feel weird." He shrugged, still carrying on the conversation despite the fact that they were pretty much ready to start recording.
"Well...if you wash them first it takes away some of that..." she mumbled softly in response, internally cringing. Really, Emmie? 'Oh, wash your clothes and that helps'? God, you are tragic.

Kellin gave her a small smile and a nod to answer her suggestion, then headed into the recording booth to do his parts. They'd likely have to do a few takes, but Emmie certainly wasn't complaining about that. She could listen to him sing all day everyday, no matter what song it was. She'd never really heard a voice like his before and it was fair to say that she enjoyed it.

Damn, Kellin seemed to look good no matter what he did. The way he looked so passionate about singing, the way he seemed to put his heart and soul into it...that in itself is attractive, but let's not even get started on everything else. For instance, he always seemed to know just how to accentuate his best features through his clothes, like the way he'd show off his somewhat toned physique or his legs...oh, that boy's legs. They were something else. Okay, that's fucking weird, Emmie. Way to go, you creeped yourself out.  At any rate, Kellin was attractive. And what she'd do to be able to get a little closer to him...

"That was great, Kellin! Let's see what we've got here..." The producer said, giving him a thumbs up as he spoke into the microphone that allowed his voice to be heard in the booth. Kellin himself headed to the door of the booth to review the takes with the others, and Emmie couldn't imagine much that was more boring to listen to than that. As such, she headed out of the studio and down the hall towards the vending machines. She could use a drink and a snack anyway. Thank you to whatever or whoever is up there for her metabolism.

She rummaged in her pocket for a couple of notes, finding what she needed before inserting the first bill and choosing a bottle of some kind of juice. She then went through a similar process for the candy bar that she chose next, when a familiar voice made itself heard from behind her.

"That's a good choice." Kellin said, causing her to jump slightly in surprise and drop what she was holding.
"Ah, shit. Sorry about that." He said with a sheepish chuckle, bending down to get her stuff as she did the same. Their hands touched briefly as they both reached for her bottle of juice, causing both of their complexions to take on a rosy hue. Wow, cliche much?

"Ah, here you go." Kellin said, grabbing both items and handing them over before standing up straight again.
"Thanks..." Emmie smiles shyly, looking down at her feet to avoid his gaze. She wasn't sure that she could make eye contact with him and not have her body betray her somehow.

"So, I came here to tell you something." The older spoke up after a couple of minutes, seeming to get braver now. Huh? What could he want?
"Yeah? And what's that?" She asked curiously, now looking up at him to show that she was actually interested.
"Well...thing is...look, I'm well aware of the fact that nothing will ever happen between us, or it's really unlikely but...I just...I like you, okay? A lot. I don't want anything to change between us but I know I'd regret it if I didn't tell you." He said quietly, looking down at his feet and fidgeting a little as he spoke.

Okay, hold on a minute. Kellin Quinn himself was confessing to her? Her of all people? When he had a girlfriend and a baby? Damn. Fuck. Shit.

"You—I mean...I-I don't know what to say..." she stammered, racking her brain to try and find some kind of way to reply.
"Don't...just..." The boy mumbled, catching her eye before leaning in slowly. Oh god, this was happening. It was happening. His slightly chapped lips gently pressed against Emmie's softer ones, his hands coming to rest on her waist. She didn't resist for a minute, not wanting this to end. She wished it didn't have to end, but these things can never last. They shared a brief, gentle kiss in the hallway before they had to pull away.

"Well, we better go back, huh?" He said, sounding a little sad. He felt the same way, huh? Cute.
"I guess we'd better..." she spoke softly, keeping her head down as they went back to the recording studio. All of a sudden, she wasn't hungry anymore.