Eyes Open ✰ Jalex

14 // The Only Noise

Guys- I finished writing this. I did. I really did. The last chapter and stupid ridiculous emotional author's note thing will be up Thursday or Friday depending on life in general. There's an album out Friday. What is it. TROPHY EYES. Trophy Eyes has a new album Friday I am taking it upon myself to warn everyone it's gonna be GOOD.

Anyways, I feel like a Simple Plan song 24/7 someone save me why are they still a band. Also holy heck Peripheral Vision by Turnover is such a good calm album they are a wonderful band go listen to that album guys. ALSO GUYS WE ARE THE IN CROWD IS OFF OF HIATUS THEY'RE CALLED SAINTE NOW AND IT'S TAY AND CAMERON AND MIKE NOW I THINK?? WHO KNOWS I WAS CRYING EARLIER BECAUSE I WAS SO HAPPY ABOUT THIS GOD BLESS. (UPDATE-- THEIR SINGLE IS OUT NOW ON ITUNES ITS CALLED TECHNICOLOR GO BUY IT LIKE 10 TIMES LIKE I DID)

Also sorry if this chapter isn't very well written and sort of vague, I didn't really know what to put in it and I'm getting sort of sad about coming up on the end of this story. The next chapter is the last one. Wow.

-

// i'm so tired because you've been so fired up

// and there was no keeping up with you

-

School sucked.

And that was true, no matter who was talking. Some false sense of stability had finally been installed in the lives of innocent students throughout the year, and they had gotten a sort of schedule worked out. Which was, as it had to be, completely and absolutely ruined once mid-May rolled around, because exams started around then and all of the math ones were scheduled on the last week of school and Jack Barakat was really bad at math and wasn't counting on passing his year. Alex was great at math, "exceptionally" great at it, and would have totally helped Jack with his work if he wasn't dealing with a particularly exciting in-school-suspension.

So.

Everyone was stressed over everything and as June and the more important exams forced their way into people's lives, the lunch table that was usually full of conversation fell silent except for the occasional "I hate my life." Binders, folders, papers, and writing utensils of all kinds were scattered across the entire table. Rian, Alex, and Jack had their science exam after lunch, which was at some ungodly hour in the morning that was right after their first hour and a half of sitting around, eating crackers, and stressing. None of them looked very good, not at all.

Jack had given up on doing his hair, and was wearing the clothes that he slept in and dark circles under his eyes. He had been surviving off of a solid diet of Ritz crackers and cranberry juice, which meant he usually had an expression on his face that made him look like he had just drunk balsamic vinegar and milk at the same time. Alex's hair was too long, and it had always been too long, but now it was at a length that made it look sort of ugly to the ordinary eye, though Jack still thought it was his favorite hair. Except for the girl with really pretty pinky-purple hair who was a sophomore. But Alex's hair was still better than hers. Alex had also seemingly thrown a black and white lens in front of his eyes and had ceased speaking about color for quite some time, although he threw the occasional remark in about how something looked. It was obvious that he was exhausted, and he didn't do anything to try to show that he wasn't. Rian was probably faring the worst through exam season, because his stupid AP teachers were still giving him homework of sorts through everything. And it was obvious that he was still not really comfortable being alive at that time, and Alex and Jack couldn't do as much as they wished they could because god damn exams took everything that they had.

And it wasn't fucking fair.

Alex had been sleeping at Jack's house. They had worked it out somehow, and they had loved it and felt peaceful for once. They had woken up together, got to smile at each others warm faces first thing in the morning, had gotten to smell each others toothpaste first thing in the morning, and yeah, they really had loved it. But then exams had started and everyone had sort of drifted apart when that happened, and yeah, that was them, spending all day around each other but barely speaking to each other. It was a weird feeling.