Change My Ways

CC made me spend that night back on my tour bus. I understood that he was only trying to help me by keeping me away from Andy’s hospital bed, but I couldn’t stop thinking about my dying brother.

“Kitten, are you okay?” Tara asked.

“I’m just worried,” I murmured, curled up on the couch. “I can’t stop thinking about Andy.”

“He’ll be just fine,” she promised me, sitting on the couch to my right. “He’s fighting for you, Alex.”

I was about to respond when I heard five voices fail to harmonize to the word “sunrise” outside the bus, making me burst out laughing. I could easily pick out two of the voices; they were great singers. The other three were off-pitch and had terrible tone. Those five always managed to cheer me up, even if only a little.

“Sunrise!” I smiled as I opened the door.

“Who is that?” I heard Tara behind me.

“There’s our Katie!” I was attacked by a huge hug and I hugged my Bear back.

“Bear… can’t… breathe,” I choked out.

“Sorry,” he said.

“Come in,” I invited them in, leading them to the couch. “We have a lot to talk about.”

“Damn right, young lady.”

“Rocket-” I tried to calm him down, but he was already gone on a scolding rant. I felt like I was fifteen again.

“You go off and form your own band, great. But I expect a phone call at least once a week from now on, understand?” I nodded. “And a real big tour? That’s great news Katie, you should have let us know!”

“Whoa there, calm down,” Tara interjected. She laid a hand on my shoulder. “Can I borrow her for a moment?” Without waiting for a response from the guys, she pulled me out of earshot. “You do know these guys are notorious for sex and drugs, right?”

I nodded, “Used to. They’ve gotten better, I promise.”

“I’m not leaving you alone with them!” she seethed quietly.

“You can trust them,” I said. “Trust me when I say that.” She gave them an uneasy glance before leaving.

“Does she not like us or something?”

“She’s just protective is all,” I said. “And I think she’s got superstitions against gingers.”

“I’m not ginger!” he defended.

"A little bit, Squeak," I joked.

“Katie does have a point.” I laughed at Chip’s tease.

“She also doesn’t believe that you guys have changed,” I continued.

“Even if we hadn’t, we would never hurt you.” I loved Night’s accent. To me, it was the most soothing and comforting thing in the world. “You’re like our little sister. You were there when we were at our worst, and-”

“-and I was still the safest teenager in the world,” I finished. “And that’s why I owe you guys so much.”

This was my family; Asking Alexandria. Rocket was my nickname for Danny, Bear was Ben, Night was James, Squeak was Sam, and Chip was Cameron. Some of the stories behind the names were simple, others weren’t. For instance, Sam made a funny squeaking sound when he laughed too hard. Danny helped me write my first song, which was titled “Rockets and Radios.” The song was never released, but it was one of my favorite memories. For the first month I was with them, I only saw James at night. It was kind of a shock when I saw him in the sunlight, just because I had begun to make a mental connection between him and the moon. I didn’t remember the exact story for Cameron, but it did have something to do with chipmunks. I think it was from that crazy camping trip they took me on to help me readjust to life shortly after they took me in.

I had the strongest connection to Ben, for obvious reasons. He was the one who found me bleeding out in an alley at three in the morning. His nickname came from a promise he made me, saying he would protect me. He had compared himself to a pissed off mama bear defending her cub to assure me I was safe. The comparison stuck in my head, and since then he’s been “Bear.”

“Hey, you guys got any drinks here?” James asked.

“If you mean alcohol, then no,” I said. “We’re all under 21 except Devin, and he doesn’t drink.”

“Dammit,” he muttered, making me laugh slightly.

“Never mind him,” Cameron said. “What was it you wanted to talk about?”

“Everything,” I replied. They all gave each other unsure glances. “And I mean everything.”

“We’re here to listen,” Ben said. “And we always will be.”

I took a deep breath, “My name is Alexandria Katherine Biersack. I’m 20 years old, current vocalist of Broken Skies, and I was kidnapped when I was 12 years old.”

Notes

So there's the new chapter! I've been having a little writers block on the next chapter, but I'm plowing through it for you guys.
Do any of you know the band Handguns? Because guess what I found out? THE PAGANO TWINS IN MY SCHOOL ARE BRANDON PAGANO'S LITTLE SISTERS AND ONE OF THEM IS LIKE MY BEST FRIEND AHHHHHHH
and I need help with a bunch of problems that have been going on recently, so if anyone could message me that would be great. I feel like I fucked up my relationship with my boyfriend, my mom has been like satan all year, and I've been having trouble hiding my scars from my parents :/