J.A.C.I.E.'s World (All Time Low Fanfiction | Jack Barakat)

Chapter 28

I was sitting at the table having a cup of tea and scrolling through emails on my laptop. My first sole project had officially come to an end and I was back to helping Justin until there was something new for me to focus on. For the time being, I was going through the many different inquiries. It was impossible for us to take them all on. It was a huge logistic and scheduling mess. Nothing I couldn't try to handle, though.

When I had just opened another email, my phone emitted a chime and buzzed on the table. I reached for it and saw a notification from Hazel.

Hazel: Have you seen this?????????

A link followed shortly after. I frowned, the curiosity in me not able to resist the urge to check out what she had sent. For all I knew, it was a video of puppies. No matter what it was, it was a welcome distraction. Even though there was a job to do, I opened the messages and tapped on the link.

My heart skipped a beat as I read the headline of the article I was sent: 'Jack Barakat secretly married in Vegas.'

The article came from some news site about alternative music. The suggested articles showed they didn't just report on news, but also bits and pieces of gossip. Honestly, I had never heard of the site before and I had no clue how Hazel stumbled upon it. Still, they seemed to have found something to report on.

I opened the article on my laptop instead so I could read it easier without all the ads covering the text. It was even more daunting to see it on a large screen. It was definitely about Jack. My husband Jack. The name 'All Time Low' was thrown in there. It was practically in the first sentence.

My eyes continued to scan the text, stumbling upon how an enthusiastic fan had somehow discovered a marriage certificate with his full name on it. Yes, it was a public record, but how did somebody just happen to find it? Even my legal name was listed. The whole thing: Jennifer Anna Clara Isabell Evans. That long monstrosity was being reported on. The only thing, though, was that the article had no idea who I was.

It wasn't a bad thing, but it was quite peculiar. Our relationship wasn't a secret anymore, so everybody who wanted to know could. Then again, my name was Jacie on everything I put out there. My instagram handle, the name I used in my profiles, my artist name... it wasn't exactly common knowledge that my actual name was Jennifer.

Luckily, there wasn't any mention of the actual private wedding we'd had. There wasn't much of a record of that. The article only mentioned that it had happened in Vegas. But, I couldn't stop wondering how somebody had found out about it, why they had, and what else was being discussed out there.

What was I supposed to think about all of this?

Jack walked out of the bathroom after taking a shower at the perfect moment. I'd just finished reading the whole thing as he approached. He pressed a kiss to the top of my head and gave a loving touch to my shoulder. It was meant as a gesture that didn't disturb me. After all, all he knew was that I was working.

"Have you seen this?" I asked, pointing at the screen, before he could step away.

"Hmm?" he hummed in response as he leaned forward to look over me instead.

He started to frown when he read the same headline that had made my heart drop. At first, I scrolled down for him, but he quickly took over so he could read at his own pace. I was just waiting for any kind of reaction. But he didn't give me much.

He took his hand off my laptop and breathed out heavily. "Damn."

I nodded in agreement, still in shock. I was questioning if the words in front of me were even real. Or was it all a weird imagination?

"It's the truth, I guess..." I sighed, resting my head on my hand as I looked at Jack.

His eyes stayed on the screen, his lips curling into a half-smile as he mused, "Jennifer Anna Clara Isabell Evans Barakat."

"Jacie's fine," I chuckled.

"I think it's a beautiful name." He leaned down and kissed my forehead before sitting down in the chair next to me.

I felt a heavy mix of emotions. "I just don't understand how they found out about it. I know we haven't exactly been hiding it, but we also haven't gone around flaunting it."

"Well, you know how these things go. The truth always finds a way out, no matter how well you hide it."

"I guess." I shrugged, my eyes still constantly glancing at the words on the website. "It's out there now. The secret isn't ours anymore."

Jack tapped his fingers rhythmically on the table, taking a second to assess the situation and think. "Should we issue a statement, clear things up?"

I considered it for a moment, but then shook my head. "Honestly? No. I don't really care what other people think."

"You sure?"

"Unless you want to."

Jack reached for my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Listen, it's out there now, but it doesn't change anything between us. We're still happily married, and I love you just as much as ever."

I gave his hand a squeeze back and smiled. "So... let the rumours be? Don't confirm or deny it?"

He nodded and grinned mischievously. "We can always go back to Vegas and get drunkenly married again if we want another secret."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Let's actually remember the next time, please."

"That does sound like a better plan."

"Of course it does. And that one won't be a secret."

Our eyes locked onto each other, silently deciding that we were just going to keep all the information to ourselves. A public announcement just felt so unnecessary. We already had everything we needed. And it felt nice to still have the sense of our own personal little cocoon. There'd be a day that we'd have a more public celebration, but we were doing that on a more normal timeline.

"You know," Jack remarked as he leaned back into his chair, "we've been married for just over six months now."

Of course I knew. Every time I saw the little number from the date on my phone screen, I added another month to my internal tally. There was no way I would forget the date. It was literally the only thing I could remember. I wasn't letting that go.

"A year ago we were 'just friends'," I added with a little giggle.

Jack snorted. "We were never 'just friends'."

"We failed pretty hard at that, didn't we?"

"Full on delusion. We literally only fooled ourselves."

"But we needed it."

He slowly nodded and breathed in. "It definitely shook me awake."

I took my chance to confess my feelings once again. "I love you."

Jack leaned over and planted a tender kiss on my lips. Our secret may have been out, but it didn't matter one bit. It was still our thing. The marriage was still between us. And that moment was always going to be a personal thing, even if it was a gap in our memory. We still went through it together. Maybe we could just afford to be a little less careful now.