without you // jack duff

chapter 35 ~ back flip

cassie's pov

it was around 6:30, the sun had almost fully set, creating a beautiful scene. everyone had been getting ready for our little hot tub party we were about to have, and i was currently making my way downstairs. i pushed open the sliding glass doors that led out to the back garden which may as well be a field. grass blanketed the ground, grey stepping stones laying on it which created a path all the way back to a bundle of trees. sat in front of it i could vividly see a small, dark wooden bench swing, two little dim lamps hanging either side of it. beside it was a little pond, mirroring the sky above it. well that's prettier than i'll ever be

i stepped down the little porch and walked up the hot tub where everyone was - either inside it or sat on the chairs around it. becca and andy were sat beside each other on the edge of the tub, feet in the water. jack was sat beside brook who was holding tori's hand under the water, thinking that no one could see. lexi and mikey looked like they had just gotten out since they had water dripping from them onto the chairs they were sitting on, and rye and amelia were sat on the floor beside some perfectly good chairs. noah was also sitting close to rye, staring at him like always - especially because he was shirtless.

"the birthday girl is here!" tori shouted once she saw me and everyone cheered. i giggled as i put my towel over the back of a chair, climbing into the hot tub between tori and becca. i closed my eyes as i felt the relaxing warm water surround me. my eyes opened as i heard rye stand up from behind me

"LETS JUMP IN THE POOL!" he screamed. oh, did i mention that there's also a giant pool on that field of grass. he ran up to the pool and did a front flip into it, creating a huge splash of water around him. i chuckled as i watched his head resubmerge from the water, shaking his head to push his hair back from his face. that water must be freezing

"HEY I WANNA JOIN" brook shouted, quickly jumping out of the hot tub and sprinting towards the pools edge. me and tori laughed as we turned so we could see more clearly. brook reached the edge of the pool and before he could jump, he slipped and fell in head first, causing us all to burst out laughing

"ARGH ITS FREEZING" he screamed as he rose to the top of the water, making us laugh more. it was almost pitch black and it was a cold day, did he expect the water to be warm? especially since the water in the hot tub where he had just been was hot?

"can i backflip in?" noah, asked, standing up. i don't know why he asked because we all knew he'd do it anyway

"if you break your neck i'm not taking you to the hospital" i laughed, watching him face away from the pool as he prepared himself for his trick. brook and rye got out to make space for noah, brook running back towards us jumping back into the hot tub, splashing us all in the process

"ah, warmth" he said and closed his eyes, fully submerging himself under the water. me and tori just happened to think the same thing and we both kicked him at the same time, sending him back up to the top

"HEY!" he shouted and we laughed since his hair was covering his eyes

"shush we're gonna miss noah break his neck!" i laughed, turning back towards the direction of the pool. i saw that rye was showing him what to do since he likes to show off with all of his cool tricks, and i could see noah practically drooling over him and his abs. once rye had gotten out, noah turned around, ready for his turn to 'impress' everyone. he swung his arms upwards for momentum and jumped, rotating enough to be facing upwards. but gravity decided to do its job and work faster, pulling him down into the pool on his back.

we all burst out laughing at his failed attempt as he swam back up to the top. rye chuckled and held his hand out to pull him out, which noah gladly took and climbed out. rye turned to walk back to us while noah stayed where he was, jumping and waving his arms, fangirling over the fact that he held ryes hand and we all laughed. i swear he's one of the roadies

i turned back around to see that andy was pulling becca by her hand back into the house and they were both giggling, definitely up to something that i don't wanna know about. mikey and lexi also stood up as he began to speak

"we're gonna go in and put on a movie if anyone wants to join" he announced. tori and brook both got out, grabbing towels and following them inside with noah following, as did rye as he put his arm around amelia, taking her in with him

"wiat where's my shoes?" i heard amelia say

"you didn't bring any out gorgeous" he chuckled as they walked inside.

i decided to stay outside to relax, but i realised someone else was here with me - jack. i looked at him for a brief moment, taking in all of his features. his dark hair was brushed upwards, forming a slight quiff above his forehead. his light, marine eyes glowed in the moonlight as it got darker, and his soft lips were slightly parted. his pale complexion lead down to his bare shoulders and chest, but once i noticed i was staring i looked down, suddenly becoming self conscious of how i looked. i don't know whether it was the way i had my hair brushed into a messy bun or if i feared how i looked in this particular lighting; maybe it was how i was showing off more skin than usual due to wearing swimwear.

"so have you had a good day so far?" his soft voice spoke, breaking the silence. maybe he could sense how i was feeling and was trying to distract my mind from it. he used to do that a lot

"amazing, actually. thank you" i replied, my mouth forming a small smile as i thought about the day. i have a whole group of people who actually care about me and are willing to put effort into making me happy

i lifted my head to meet jacks eyes once again, but this time, we were a lot closer than before. had he moved? had i moved? it was like the world had shifted and brought us closer together. but i couldn't move, and by the looks of it, neither could he. we were both sat frozen, staring into each other's eyes. i broke the eye contact when i felt my eyes drop to his lips, and i started leaning forward. it was like i had no control over my actions. . . but i didn't do anything to stop it either

he slowly leaned down and gently pressed his lips against mine, sending a small shiver down my spine. our lips only parted for a split second before they were pressed back together again, continuing to move in sync. something about it just felt right, like it was meant to be, so we continued.

my hand rose to the side of his neck while his snaked around my waist, gently pulling me closer to him. the gap between us was closed when my body shifted onto his lap, speeding things up ever so slightly. one of his hands rested on the bottom of my back with the other further up, keeping us close together while one of my hands ran through his hair, resting on his shoulders and neck.
(a/n peter kavinsky wHO¿)

"is this what you meant by sorting things out?" a voice spoke, interrupting our moment. that voice belonged to my brother. i jumped and quickly pulled away from jack, trying to move off of his lap. since he also jumped at the sudden voice, his movement knocked me backwards and caused me to fall back into the water, head under.

"NOAH!" i shouted once i had managed to stand up, being completely soaked.

"i was gonna ask if you were gonna join us for a movie and drinks, but i'll guess i'll leave you to it" he chuckled, walking back into the building. i turned to look down at jack who was still sitting down and we both laughed

"shall we go in?" i asked and he nodded, getting up and climbing out. we both grabbed our towels and made our way in to the building

maybe me and jack will be okay

a/n
i love jack

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