without you // jack duff

chapter 27 ~ soundcheck

cassie's pov

half an hour into soundcheck the boys were already going crazy. they'd already pushed each other off of the stage at least three times and were constantly tripping over each others feet. no wonder the fans love them so much

i was currently sat on the stage, untangling all of the wires because seeing them in knots caused me immense pain. the others were speaking to some of the people who work here, probably finding out what time everyone will be allowed in and what time everything starts. a few moments later, i saw a pair of feet walk up in front of me. i looked up to see that those shoes belonged to jack.

". . . need any help?" he asked, fiddling with his fingers. he looked at his feet after making eye contact with me

"sure" i softly replied, sending him a small smile. he sat down with me, a couple feet between us and started fiddling with the wires. i didn't want to be mad at him, i want to be civil with him. and although we were sitting in silence, it didn't feel as awkward as it usually is between us. it made me feel slightly better

"i can just tell you guys are gonna be great!" i heard a voice of one of the workers beam. something about the bubbly voice brought back memories from the past, and something about that voice seemed familiar.

i looked up to meet jacks eyes, and he was already looking at me with an expression of disbelief, also realising who the voice belonged to. i immediately climbed off of the stage, quickly making my way towards the little huddle of people and jack followed. as the voice grew closer and louder, anticipation built up inside me until i pushed through the few people blocking the sight of the person i was looking for. once i saw this person standing before me, my hands raised to my mouth and my eyes filled up with tears. it's him

it's my brother

his eyes met mine and i watched them fill up with shock, disbelief and excitement. i smiled, running towards him and leaping into his arms. he spun me around as i started to cry into his shoulder, holding him tighter

"who is he?" one of the boys quietly whispered

"her brother" jack smiled, causing a few of them to gasp, knowing that i hadn't seen or heard from him in so long

"you have no idea how mad i want to be at you" i laughed slightly, pulling away from the hug to wipe my tears

"you know you can't hate me cassie" he smiled, wiping my eyes and pulling me back into the hug that i've waited three years for

yes, i was mad that he left, but i can't blame him. he was going through all the same things that i went through, and when our dad became an alcoholic, his view on my brother changed; meaning that he thought that 'his kind', being gay, was completely wrong and he was a disappointment to the world. he knew of everything that happened after he ran away as i had texted him every detail, hoping for a reply. but i can't be mad now that i'm finally reunited with him

we finally pulled away from the hug, smiling more than the both of us probably had in a long time. he looked around, smiling, before meeting eyes with jack. he leaned in slightly to say something to me

"am i hallucinating or is that jack" he mumbled and i laughed slightly

"it's jack" i confirmed

"but i thought he-"

"we're- sorting things out" i stuttered, cutting him off before he could mention anything from the past. he stared at jack with a slight glare, jack nervously biting his lip as he knew how much of an overprotective brother he was

". . . am i allowed to hug him?" he asked, a grin replacing the slightly menacing look on his face. jack smiled and held his arms out, accepting the hug. back when we all lived in ireland, jack was practically a part of our family, just like we were his

"okay so since i've decided you're all gonna be seeing a lot me from now on, you should probably know that i'm noah" he smiled, introducing himself. i smiled since what he said was definitely true. now that i know he's here, i'm going to constantly see him. we have so much to catch up on, and i can't even exaggerate how much i missed him

everyone introduced themselves to each other, and the smile on my face stayed constant. my brother was my best friend, and when he ran away, a part of me went with him. his appearance had only changed slightly, his hair was dyed a lighter ash blonde and a couple inches added to his height, but other than that, he kept his same pale complexion and and bright eyes; something that apparently were the similarities between us that showed we were siblings

"this here, is my good friend tori. she's put up with me for over two years now" he laughed, introducing me and the rest of us to the other worker standing by his side. her curly, dirty blonde hair was brushed back into a messy bun, strands pulled out and framing her face to show her ice blue eyes and her bright smile. i smiled kindly at her, easily seeing the two of us becoming good friends. i held my arms out to give her a welcoming hug, which she accepted

"thanks for looking after him, i know he's a handful" i giggled, pulling away from the hug

"it's alright," she laughed
"he's had to put up with me too"

once we all realised that the show was supposed to be starting soon, we all headed backstage, letting the boys do whatever the needed to do to prepare for the show. this amazing night has barely started, and it's already so much better than i had originally hoped

a/n
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