Reconnected (Sequel to Strong Dislike)

Birthday Girl

I plop myself into the uncomfortable green waiting room chair and sigh and the dull red walls. I glance at a few of the magazines on the table but find them ultimately uninteresting. I glance at the receptionist before pushing myself out of the chair and approaching her desk. 

"How much longer do you think Black Veil Brides will be in there?" I ask, tapping my fingers on the marble desk as she turns her attention away from the computer in front of her to me and pushes her glasses on top of her head. 

"Mr.  Biersack didn't give an exact time. He said just until it's perfect. But like I said, you can of course wait here for him. Those magazines are rather old but I can offer you the television remote?" She asks but I sigh.

"No, thank you." I say, turning back and reseating myself in the hard chair. 

My phone buzzes in my hand after a few minutes of me staring at the wall, the only  sound coming from the receptionist tapping away on her keyboard. 

From Mom: Happy Birthday my dear! 24 better treat you right ;) xoxo

I laugh at my mom before texting back a quick thank you and setting my phone on my lap. 

Pretty much everyone I know had texted me or called to wish me a happy birthday. 

September 17th, 1992.  The day I was born. 

Andy promised we would do something special, so he told me to wait for him at the recording studio claiming, "We're almost done babe."

That was over an hour ago. I've been sitting in this waiting room for half an hour, which is honestly not really how I wanted to spend my 24th birthday. 

"Hey birthday girl!" Jake yells at me happily as a door closes behind him and he steps into the small waiting room. 

"Hey Jake! Thanks." I jump up and he hugs me tightly. 

He releases me and turns to the vending machine, inserting two dollars.

"Nobody likes you when you're 23, am I right?" He giggles as he punches the Coca Cola button and two bottles pop out. 

"I'm 24." I say and he frowns, turning to me. 

"Damn."

"Are you guys done yet?" I ask excitedly, taking his presence as a good sign. 

Jake's frown deepens. 

"Sadly, no. Andy's being really persistent about this one. He wants it to be perfect as usual."

"Yeah, I know." I sigh and Jake pats me on the shoulder.

"He's just stressed. I'll try and talk to him, okay." Jake says and I smile. 

"Thanks, good luck in there."

________________________________________________________________________________

"Babe, you're still here? Didn't you get my text?" Andy asks and my eyes snap open. I quickly drop my feet from the table in front of me and sit up. 

"No, I didn't get a text." I reply groggily as he had just interrupted my nap. 

Andy takes out his phone and taps around for a minute before sighing. 

"I forgot to press send." He scratches the back of his neck uncomfortably and suddenly one of his cute quirks is one of the most annoying things in the world. 

"What time is it?" I ask quietly and he bites his lip. 

"Uh 8:37. The other guys already left." Andy says and stares at me, trying to read my expression I assume.