Don't You Dare: A Synyster Gates Story

Chapter Twenty-Six

Author's Note: Hope everyone is still enjoying this story! Sorry for the delay between chapters, but thanks so much for reading! xo &*

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Aubrey had a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep that night. She knew if she fell asleep, her time left with Brian, Jimmy, and Zack would be over before she knew it, and she wanted to cherish it for as long as possible. Even if that meant getting very little sleep.

She glanced at the clock. It was 3 o'clock in the morning. She glanced the other way and saw Brian asleep beside her, naked and tangled in her sheets, looking so peaceful and content, which was exactly how she felt as well. And having him in her bed again made her heart swell.

Carefully, she climbed out of bed. Brian stirred but didn't appear to wake up, so she stumbled out of the room to check on Zack and Jimmy. Both were still passed out in her living room. Zack on the couch and Jimmy on the floor. Snoring and drooling respectively.

She smiled.

It felt surreal that they were all there. In her apartment, in her bed, in her living room. She didn't want them to leave. It felt like this was where they're supposed to be. Not necessarily in her apartment or in Phoenix, but in her life, where she can walk into the other room to check on them after a long night of heavy drinking and puking (from Jimmy, at least) then walk into the bedroom and climb back into bed with Brian.

They were only hours away from having to leave. Then life would go back to normal, and it would seem as if they had never even been there at all. She dreaded that feeling.

When she went back into her bedroom, she noticed Brian was awake.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" She wondered quietly.

"S'okay," he replied softly, a rasp in his voice. "Where'd you go?"

"Checked on Thing One and Thing Two," she answered. "They're both still passed out in the living room."

"Good," he mumbled, adoring that she got up to check on his best friends. "C'mere."

He held an arm out and she climbed into bed, snuggling up to his chest as he wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her forehead.

"I don't want you to leave," she muttered into his bare chest.

"I don't want to leave," he replied with a sigh. Sometimes he wished he had a normal job that he could relocate to Phoenix. It didn't matter that his family and friends were in California. Aubrey was in Phoenix, so Phoenix was where he wanted to be.

And at that moment, she didn't care about her job. She didn't care about her own independence. She wanted this life all day every day. Whether it was in Phoenix, in Huntington Beach, or in the middle of nowhere. She wanted it all.

"Is this how it would be, Brian?" She asked quietly. "If I lived in California with you. Is this how life would be all the time? Being able to check on our friends passed out in the other room then being able to climb into bed with you?"

"Yeah, baby," he answered sleepily, his eyes shutting. "This is how it would be."

"I want that," she whispered.

"Me too," he yawned, his eyes staying shut, trying not to over analyze what she was saying.

"But what about when you go on tour?" She wondered.

"You'd come with me," he confirmed.

"What if I didn't?" She asked. "What if I stayed home while you went on tour?" She imagined the distance would still be difficult whether she was in Huntington Beach or not.