Letters and Murmurs

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Free-ish

"What are you two doing?"

"Nothing," Jack and I said at the same time looking at the paramedic.

"Well the bag is almost empty so I will say you're good to go," the paramedic said cheerily before taking the back from Jack.

The paramedic untwisted the end connecting the line from the IV line. She flushed the line with saline again. I watched Jack who watched the paramedic who worked skillfully. She placed gloves on her hands. She began to rip off the bandage part around the IV line holding it into my arm.

"This is going to hurt," she spoke and ripped off the bandage as fast as possible then placing light pressure on my arm to stop the burning.

She placed a cotton ball on the needle in my arm before pulling it out and pressing a thing on the side to have the needle be snapped back into the device. I held the cotton ball at the corner of my elbow while she disposed of the needle in a proper place along with the empty saline bag. Once she back she lifted the cotton ball to see I was hardly bleeding before placing just a bandage at the corner of my arm.

"Remove it in thirty minutes. It may be sore or hurt when you bend your elbow so just take it easy. If you have any other questions or concerns we will be hanging out the venue," She said before shaking my hand and shaking Jack's hand.

"How," He said and looked at me smiling.

"Can," I followed up.

"Anyone," Jack said looking me dead in the eyes.

I paused and thought for a moment.

"Like," I looked at him smirking as he furrowed his eyebrows together.

"Some," Jack continued and spun on his heels.

"One," I stated cleverly leaving him a few words,

"um, like," Jack said trying to make the sentence game appropriate as Rian walked in at the wrong time.

"Me," I finished the sentence.

"What?" Rian said as Jack stopped spinning in circles

"Nothing," I said before hopping off the table and my knees almost gave out.

Greatest feeling ever falling almost down on your face. I grabbed the table with the back of my hands pushing myself back up. Jack eyed me but never did a thing. The doubt started to raise in my head and I couldn't help but divert my eyes from his.

"Well, since your IV is done. Jack, you need to warm up and practice for tonight and then you know we will have a free like three hours," Rian said as Jack nodded and then walked out of the room.

"What was that?" Alex asked as Rian followed Jack.

"I don't know he is being weird," I spoke softly and then looked at my shoes.

"Is it Jack who is acting weird or you? Did something hap-"

"Oh my god, Alex it is Jack we are talking about here. Nothing would happen between Logan and Jack. Maybe if it were Beckett and Logan then yeah I could see us walking in and clothes being strung everywhere. It is jack we are talking about here," Ryleigh said as I pushed myself away from the pingpong table.

"I know Ry. I just-"

"Forget it 'Lex," I stated and then slid my way past Zack who walked in carrying some alcohol in.

"Woah, what up little one," I heard someone else stop me as I groaned throwing my head back.

"It is my job to ask seeing as you know I am practically your aunt," Nicole looked at me smiling.

"It's nothing, Nicole. I promise," I smiled faking it and then walked toward the door where the security guard was from earlier.

"Hey kid, didn't I tell you to leave earlier?" The security guard said as I just waved him off.

I pulled my phone out and texted my dad that I was on the panic bus. I sat on my bunk and stared at the bunk wall across from mine. I looked at it staring at before taking a deep breath in and then exhaling it. I grabbed ahold of my left thumb with my right hand gripping around it. I began to bend my thumb and bit my lip super hard continuing to take deep breaths in and out. I heard footsteps climb onto the bus and I knew the hand on my back to be that of Alex.

"He doesn't even fucking care enough to come to see if I am fine," I said through the tears.

"Who?" Alex asked rubbing my back and prying my fingers from around my thumb.

I just left out a huff of air and I couldn't help it. I began to full-on cry and it took Alex for a loss. I flinched when he picked me up and laid down with me. Alex ran his fingers through my hair messily getting tangled up. I yelped as Alex would apologize.

"Just stop. I am a lost cause," I said as Alex slid out from my under me and looked at me.

"You are not a lost cause. A lost cause would not have fought so long and so hard to get back. You are nothing but a-"

"Stop!" I screamed and it even took Dan off balance as he climbed up the steps grabbing a new pair of sticks.

"Logan, you okay?" Dan asked and sat in the free bunk across from where Alex was sitting.

My body just rose up and down as I cried. It was one of those silent cries but you could tell because of the convolutions my body was having.

"I am fine. Let's keep pretending," I spoke and Dan looked at Alex.

I got up off the bus and walked around the parking lot. I made sure the fans couldn't see me and it wasn't like it mattered. I didn't have a pass inside the building. I knew Alex wasn't going to follow me and it was imperative that Ryleigh doesn't strain her body because she is pregnant. I didn't even know why I was here anymore. I went and stood at the ramp toward the open outside night sky. I leaned up against the wall as I felt a hand on my back. I jumped about 2 feet in the air as dad rubbed his hand on my back.

"Oh great another one of those talks," I said and rolled my eyes looking at the opening above us.

"Ryleigh wants to perform tonight. She got the okay to perform and it will be fine she is probably going to sit most of the set though. That would leave you walking around while you play guitar. That is if you want to," Dad offered me with a gentle voice.

"Yeah, I'll do it. It's whatever," I said and then walked back toward the venue to the security guard.

Rian was drumming on a wall. Jack was drinking alcohol from a can, Alex kept fixing his hair and trying to position a beanie on his head. Ryleigh sat on a set case. Zack Hall and Zack Merrick were talking about workouts and Zack Merrick got on the floor to do a pre-show push-ups. Nicole was walking around with her bass on her playing simple chords ever so often and just annoying the guys. Mike and Dan were dancing together like idiots and everyone was waiting for my dad. Dad walked up and flashed his badge as the security guard went after me again.

"I told you-"

"I know I am with him." I pointed to my dad as he stood behind the security guard.

"I want you to know I just called my superior and some other security to have you removed. I don't know how many times I have had to tell you and just fans in general today you can't just invade-"

"She isn't invading people's privacy. She is my daughter." Dad said and pulled me forward around the security guard.

I was pulled into a dressing room by Ryleigh who was giggling. She looked at me as I looked back at her.

"So what is this all about?" Ryleigh smirked at me.

Ryleigh held in her hand one of the socks I had thrown off earlier. I looked at her with a bitter fear in my eyes. Ryleigh squealed before sitting in a chair across from me and began doing my make up for the show.

If you are going to commit a murder, maybe you shouldn't leave so much evidence. Walls aren't the only things that talk.