In My Arms: A Salex Story

Subway

On tour, it can be hard to find anything good to eat while driving miles upon miles though the barren wasteland many call the United States, thought Alexander Giannascoli in the back of his van as his bandmate, best friend, and secret crush Samual drove.

"Yo Sam.." he said longingly.

"What, Alex," Sam yawned.

"I'm hungry, can we get Subway or something soon? I think there's one off this exit here."

"You mean Subass? Why the fuck would you want to eat there?" Sam laughed jokingly.

Alex smiled and got up slightly to punch him on the shoulder, "I want a sub, you asshole!"

"Okay fine, we can get Subway if you want it so badly," Sam teased as he turned the steering wheel to the right, taking exit 89B to the nearest Subway.

John, their bassist, slithered, "Subway sounds great, love me an Italian BMT!"

"Shut up, Johnathon," whispered the slightly annoyed Julien Baker, who was filling in for their current drummer while he got a knee replacement.

John heard and quickly rebutted, "That's not my name, Juliem!"

"That's not MY name, Jom!" Julien was red in the face and furious by now. Her southern accent always came out when she was particularly exasperated.

Alex was growing concerned at his bandmates' quarreling and swiftly jumped in, "Hey, can we just try and get along until the end of this tour? You're acting like Mat Cothran and Sam Ray over here, so can you just, stop?" Wide-eyed, he chuckled and smiled as earnestly as he could, hoping his halfhearted joke would cool them down.

"Fine.." said Julien as she stared dramatically out the window. Everyone could tell she was still resentful of John for stealing the love of her life away from her at her own show only a few months prior. A single tear streamed down her cheek, but she quickly wiped it away before any of her temporary bandmates could see.

Sam pulled skillfully into a parking spot in front of the smallest Subway any of them had ever seen. It was in the middle of nowhere, smack dab in the center of some Midwestern state Alex hadn't heard of prior to driving through it. He glanced at a license plate on a truck parked outside the restaurant, "What the fuck is Nebraska supposed to mean?" He chortled walking by it.

His bandmates looked concerned, but ignored the remark thinking it was another one of his odd jokes. Alex was aware people thought his sense of humor was strange, but most of his friends still loved him despite his insanity. Sam especially understood his sense of humor, as the two had been pals since middle school. He thought Alex's jokes were funny, even if they were nonsensical or offputting at times. Alex seriously wasn't joking about not knowing what Nebraska was, though.

As the four walked through the Subway door, Alex trailed slightly behind them so he could glance at Sam without him knowing. "Damn.." he whispered, but no one heard. Alex had been pining for his best friend since their junior year of high school, when they spent almost every waking moment with each other. Whether that be practicing for their band's gigs in each others' basements, doing precalculus homework together, or having deep and philosophical discussions, Alex always felt different about Sam than he did other people. He could never tell if it was the pot they were smoking or the way Sam's eyes glimmered in the moonlight that made him feel the way he did. Recently, Alex was realizing that his feelings for Sam were growing stronger and becoming harder to control.

Alex's eyes fluttered as he broke out of the trance he had been under for mere seconds following Sam into the Subway. "Hey, what do you wanna get, I'll pay," Sam said softly to him as they stood there looking at the menu.

"You don't have to do that," Alex replied, looking up at him with a slight smirk on his face.

Julien had been watching them inconspicuously for the past few minutes, as she already knew what she was going to order: A Veggie Delite with salt and vinegar. As a vegan, it was about the only thing she could order there, but she didn't mind. Her treasured Veggie Delites reminded her of her ex lover who was stolen away from her only a few months prior by Alex G's bassist. Being stuck in a van with John wasn't as bad as she made it seem, since Alex was there. Though they had only been friends for a few weeks before he asked her to be their temporary drummer, she found him charming to be around. He always knew how to settle John down when he started to annoy her.

Walking up behind Sam and Alex, she startled them by jeering, "What are you two lovebirds up to?" She smiled mischievously as if she knew exactly what was going through Alex's head.

Alex blushed profusely but tried to hide it from Sam by quickly walking up to the Subway worker. "Hi, uh, I'd like a six inch meatball sub on rye bread please. Thanks."

The cashier gave him a disgusted glare and snickered, "What kind of freak eats meatballs on rye?" Alex's face dropped as he heard this comment, and he struggled to find the right words to say to defend himself. In a moment of humiliation and shame, he started to walk away, but felt a soft hand on his shoulder. It was Sam.

"Hey man, be nice to him.. He's not a freak, rye bread is just his favorite," he explained fiercely to the cashier. Alex looked away in embarrassment, but felt a sense of comfort being defended by his best friend for such an insignificant thing. "You know what, we're not even gonna eat here anymore. C'mon Alex, let's go." He walked out the door and Alex followed.

"Are you fucking serious," Julien said under her breath, watching them leave. She was alone in a restaurant with this bitchy Subway worker and John Heywood, the man who, as we all know, stole her lover away from her at her own show. "I'm still getting my Veggie Delite," she groaned as she approached the counter and ordered it. She sat down at a table in the very back of the restaurant and gave John a hateful glare.

John ordered a sandwich with a lot of turkey and lettuce on it and sat down on the opposite side of the restaurant, facing away from Julien. They ate in silence as "Bad Romance" by Lady Gaga played on repeat over the speakers for some reason. Alex and Sam sat in the van outside, waiting for them to come out.