Chapter 25

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All the boys had gone "dark" on their social media so that they can finally get a break and be themselves and work on songs in a stress-free environment. Or so it started that way.

Jack explained it to me when accusations and demands for apologies started to flood in.

The first few months went by fine. The boys had a blast. They had time to work on themselves, their music, their private lives. Jack had that time to persue me. He tells me that's why he's been here for so long without having any Why Don't We events to go to. Jonah had that party right after they got back from their last tour, and then a week or two after that they planned the hiatus.

See, it's evidant the fans have gotten bored at this point. They're digging into their pasts; posts and tweets they made when they were basically middle-schoolers or freshmen that's now considered highly offensive. Racist jokes and homophobic things and just, stuff that most kids our age did back then. It was considered acceptible then, and most of it wasn't supposed ti be taken seriously.

I remember posting some pretty nasty things back when I was little too. I had a pretty dark sense of humor and I found a lot of things funny back then that simply wouldn't fly with me now.

I mean, I even remember making a couple posts about people who had been in my situation when I think back to it. Who lived with abusive or sexist partners. I didn't understand back then what you actually go through to get to that point.

I made an instagram yesterday, though, and followed the boys and as promised I asked Jack to let Gabby know about it. She followed me even though I haven't posted anything yet. It kinda makes me snicker to think that my boyfriend's ex and baby-mama is my first follower and he don't even follow me.

Then I was reccomended fanpages and the biggest thing going on was these petitions for Corbyn to kill himself.

"Baby, don't worry about it okay? Everything's gonna be fine." Jack eases my phone away from me and sets it aside gingerly. When he noticed the look on my face, he asked why I got my beautiful face all scrunched up like that and I showed it to him.

"But why? Why would they say all these things and dig this all up and even make a petition?" I look down at my hands, then back up at him.

He sits beside me on the couch. "Addy, that stupid petition's not gonna do nothing. They're calling us all out, okay? They've already hit me pretty hard when we had Lavender, and then when Gabby and I broke up, but I'm sure I'll get it again."

"But why didn't you tell me this was happening?"

He shrugs. "I didn't want you to worry about it I guess... especially now."

"Jack-"

"Hey! Where's the girls? I picked us up chipotle on the way home cause I didn't feel like cooking supper tonight." Kristin comes in with an armfull of bags and I get up automatically and help her carry them into the kitchen.

"Thanks sweetie. I still got more stuff in the car." She smiles at me endearingly. "Gosh, you're such a help around here."

I offer her a kind smile back and Jack gets up and starts to put away some of the groceries and toiletries his mom picked up while we grab the rest.

We sit down and eat and after that Jack acompanies Tezzy and I on a walk around the neighbourhood.

"So... do you think that new virus from China's gonna make it here?" Jack inquires.

I look up at him in surprize. "A new virus?"

"Yeah, I read this news article on it. They said it's almost just like the flu but worse. They think it came from a guy that ate a bat." He answers. "I guess that it's spreading real fast and people are dying."

"Well I hope it don't. I'm sure it'll spread like wildfire and with the governement the way it is, it'll be one big shit show."

Jack agrees. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Trump nearly started world war three, I can just imagine him trying to get control of the country after that."

"Jack?"

"Hmm?"

I fall quiet. Maybe I shouldn't bring it up again. Maybe I should just not say anything and forget about it.

"Addy, what?"

My gaze flickers to him and then fixates on Cortez's ears. "I just... it's... I don't..."

He reaches for my hand and I flinch back a little.

"Why do the fans think trying to hurt you guys is gonna solve anything?"

Jack purses his lips. "They don't all want to hurt us. It's just some of them. They're mad at the things we said and I get it. It wasn't right."

"You were kids."

"They don't see it that way."

"But they have timestamps to go by."

"It doesn't matter to them."

"But it should." I reply, feeling all heated inside.

"I know it should, but it just doesn't." He replies just as quick as I did. "We can't say anything right now because of management n' stuff. We can't post anything on our accounts unless we absolutly have to and they're not gonna stop."

"That's not fair." I state.

"I know it's not fair but that's just how it is right now."

My heart leaps when the blur of arms reach for me. My breath catches in my throat and I just shove back without a thought.

I push him hard. Hard enough that he stumbles back a couple steps.

I completly freeze up and blank for a moment. I just did that. I stare down at my hands as if they betrayed me, but really it was me. I just put my hands on Jack.

"Addy..?"

I cover my mouth as Cortez huddles against my leg. I just shoved Jack as if it was nothing. I put my hands on my man...

"I'm sorry." I whisper in shock at my action, suddenly as breathless as if I had sprinted the block. "Oh god, I'm sorry."

"Shh... shh... hey, it's okay," his voice has completely softened up. "It's my fault, I shoulda got it when you moved your hand away."

I shake my head, holding my now fluttering hands to my chest. "I'm soo sorry. I shouldn't a did that. I didn't hurt you did I..?"

"Addy, look, I'm okay," he holds his hands open in front of him to catch my attention and I slowly follow them up his arms and then to the rest of him. "I'm okay. I promise. You didn't hurt me at all. You just surprized me."

"I'm still sorry." Hot, salty tears race down my cheeks anyway.

"Baby, come here." He keeps his hands out to me. "It's okay. It's okay, let me hug you, okay? Just let me hug you."

I latch onto him and burry my face in the side of his neck. He cooes reasuring words to me until I've recollected myself a bit.

"I didn't mean to put my hands on you." I breathe out, my nose stuffed from crying.

"I know, Addy. I know. I scared you and I'm sorry." He presses his forehead to mine. "Hey... would we consider this our first fight?"

I look into his eyes for a moment, purplexed, then burst into a fit of giggles. My gosh, this boy's such a goofball.

"I mean, I guess... was it really a fight though?"

He thinks about it for a moment. "I mean... we were kinda on the same side weren't we?"

I ponder it. We were on the same side...

"Whatever it was, you won." He chuckles. "You might be tiny, but you're hella strong."

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