Echoing J.A.C.I.E. (All Time Low Fanfiction | Jack Barakat)

Chapter 13

"Jacie!" Rian hollered loudly when I entered the dressing room.

"Mr. Drummer-man!" I exclaimed back, running up to him and pulling him into a big hug. "Long time no see."

"Don't blame me, you're the one jetting off to different continents."

I laughed as we let each other go. "Well, I'm back now, and I'll annoy you for an entire week."

"I've been looking forward to this for months." He winked back.

I grinned at him and watched as Jack put my duffle bag in a corner of the room. He had come to meet me at the airport and we'd already shared a great reunion. I was so happy to be back around him. On tour out of all places. But, now, it was time to greet all the other people I knew on this tour. It had been even longer since I'd seen them.

After putting my bag down, Jack joined us, loosely draping his arm over my shoulder and pulling me into him. It felt good to be sharing the same space again after so much time apart. I actually couldn't wait for a week full of cramped nights in his bunk again.

"Babe!" Alex did a double take as he walked past in the hallway, deciding to enter the room. "You're just in time for rehearsal."

"Rehearsal?" I raised an eyebrow at him jokingly. "You think I want to share a stage with you guys?"

He just gave me a blank unamused stare back.

I chuckled at Alex's dramatic response and playfully nudged him. "I guess I can suffer through one more song with you lot. But only because I'm feeling generous today."

"Generous or trying to steal the spotlight?" Rian smirked.

"Why not both?"

I got a few laughs out of all of them, Jack pressing a kiss to the top of my head.

We continued to catch up for a bit longer while a crew member came to ask if I had my in-ears with me. Luckily I did. Initially I had them in one of my other bags, which were all being shipped off to my dad's place while I was on tour with Jack. I could only take one bag with me on tour after all. Fortunately, I quickly took them with me. They were better than my usual earphones anyway.

"Jace, soundcheck beer?" Alex offered before we made our way to the stage, continuing a tradition we had started on the tour we did through Europe.

"No, I'm good," I declined with a shake of my head even though he already held it out for me. "Let's not mix alcohol and jet lag."

He shrugged and opened it up for himself. Jack and I had decided we'd tell them after my 12-week scan, or in my case 13-week. So, it was going to be a week full of rejecting alcohol and coming up with excuses for me. It was going to be a question of how long we were going to keep that going.

I just watched all of them up on stage for a while as they figured out a few other things for the show. There were some discussions about the arrangements and whether they wanted to add a new song or not. All routine, really. They also played a few songs to prepare for later.

Eventually, I got a microphone and got to have a little fun of my own. I hadn't performed in a while, mainly focusing on my songwriting and producing endeavours. But I was excited to get out again, crowds singing along. Especially with Jack by my side.

I simply swayed along as they started the song. As much as I wanted to bounce around already, I knew it was best to conserve my energy for later. For this song, Jack and I always got to dance around together, having a bit of fun.

I tried my best to remember all the lyrics when my part came up. Honestly, I hadn't sung the song in months, so it really was a question if I could even remember it. But I let the rhythm and melody guide me, making the lyrics flow effortlessly. It was muscle memory.