Whoever She Is (John O'Callaghan/ARTTM)

Chapter 4

A/N: Sorry this is a bit short, hopefully the next chapter is longer and more detailed!

Lauren's POV:

As soon as I got off the phone with John, I couldn't wipe the smile off my face. Cara was looking at me as if I was some psychopath, but then shook her head and we both laughed. I'd told her about my night at the party with John and his friends. He'd told me all about how he was in a band called The Maine. Some of my other friends listened to them and got me interested a bit, but I wasn't as big of a fangirl as they were.

"Sooo... whatcha gonna wear??" asked Cara excitedly.

"Um, I really have no clue!" I answered. Cara then pulled me up off the couch and dragged me to her room, opening her closet. I sat on her bed, and when I tried to protest, she just covered my mouth. I sighed, knowing that Cara would refuse to let me leave her house without making me wear one of her edgy, sexy outfits.

She rummaged through her collection of clothes, saying 'hmm' or 'how about this?' and holding something up to me every now and then. After about 10 minutes, I finally said, "Cara, this is just a carnival. Its not like I'm making a red carpet appearance." As soon as I said that, she turned around and held up a pair of black high-waisted shorts and a flowy, white tank top with a picture of a cartoon owl on it. I actually liked it. It wasn't something that I would have normally worn, but it suited me better than most of the other things Cara owned. I wouldn't look weird or out of line if I wore it. "This is the one. You are wearing this," she stated confidently. I laughed and said, "Okay, okay. I'll go change then!"

After I put on the outfit, Cara pulled out her pair of black Converse high-tops for me. It was a good thing we were both the same size shoe. "Damn, girl, John's gonna be drooling over you!" she exclaimed after observing me in her huge mirror. I  blushed and looked down at the floor. "Yeah, I hope so."

John's POV:

As I drove away from Eric's, I couldn't help but worry about what would happen if I went to the carnival and he saw me with Lauren. It wasn't like I could bail on her, because that would be a real douchey move, and I actually wanted to enjoy another night with her. I didn't want one girl to ruin my friendship with Eric, but I didn't want to imagine losing Lauren to another guy, who could possibly even be Eric himself. When I got home, my phone rang. It was Garrett.

"Yo," I sighed.

"Hey, dude, I'm not at Eric's anymore. Left right after you. He tell you about the carnival?" Garrett spoke.

"Yup, and Lauren invited me to go tonight, too! I have no fricken clue what I'm gonna do." I plopped down on my couch and covered my face with one of the pillows.

"Oh, no way, man! You're screwed! I wasn't planning on going, but it looks like you might need some help from your good pal Garrett!"

"No, no, bad idea right there. How would you even help anyway?" I asked.

"I don't know, keep Eric distracted and away from you? I could.....OH! I could call a girl and set him up on a little date, maybe?"

"Garrett, what girl on this planet would agree to go to some carnival with Eric when it starts in only a few hours?"

"We could have Pat put on a skirt and a little makeup," Garrett joked. It actually made me laugh, but I still refused.

"Dude, I'm gonna have to confess sometime. Can't hide it forever. But please don't tell Eric that I'm planning on meeting Lauren there," I told him.

Garrett sighed and said disappointedly, "Alright, fine. Guess we'll use my brilliant idea some other day."

"Yeah, yeah, you keep thinking that, Gare. Gotta go get ready, but are you gonna still go tonight anyway?"

"Yeah, I suppose so. Besides, how can I pass up the opportunity to go on some shitty rides and eat cotton candy till my stomach hurts? I believe that Nick, Pat, and Jared are also going."

"Hah, okay, cool. See you there, then." With that, I hung up the phone and walked to my room. I still lived with my parents and two brothers, but I wasn't home all that often because of the band and touring. It wasn't like I was one of those 40-year-old video game nerds who still lived in their mother's basement. No one was at the house today because they were all either at work or off doing their own thing.

I walked to my closet, searching for something to wear. I found a Tom Petty t-shirt and some navy blue khaki shorts and paired them with my dark grey boat shoes. I tried taming my hair as best as I could and then went to sit on the couch. It was only 4:00, so I decided to pass the time by watching a few episodes of Family Guy. Before I knew it, I was drifting off to sleep, dreaming about seeing Lauren at the carnival in just a couple hours...

*     *     *     *     *

I awoke to the sound of my phone vibrating against my leg. Jared was calling me. I answered immediately.

"Dude! Where the frick are you?? I've been trying to look around for you but can't find you anywhere! Garrett, Pat, and I have been trying to keep Eric away from Lauren but its not gonna last much longer!" he exclaimed.

"Oh, fuck. No no no no no," I groaned. I was already a half hour late! "Shit, I overslept, oh god, Lauren's gonna be pissed at me!"

"Just hurry up and get here, I'll try to find her without Eric seeing me and tell her what happened," said Jared.

"I'm getting in the car right now, be there in a few minutes. Thanks, man." I hung up the phone, raced out the door and hopped into my truck, zooming out of my driveway onto the road ahead, hoping with all my heart that Eric wouldn't steal the one chance I possibly had with Lauren.