You're Not Alone

Calling Out For Something to Spark

(Austin's POV)

We'd been on the road to our last city of the tour. We were all pretty bummed out, so we took a little detour and found a cool lakefront. We all stopped and hung around outside, despite the nip in the air.

"Is this good enough?" Jen asked, displaying a flat stone in her hand. I nodded, grabbing her hand and bringing her closer to the shore. I turned stone over in my fingers. "The key to skipping stones is patience. Don't expect to get it right on the first try. My dad had to stay here for hours with me while I learned." I chuckled.

I drew my arm back and launched the rock at the lake. It skidded along the surface before disappearing underneath the water. I glanced down at Jen who was watching intently. "Now you." She made a nervous, yet adorable face. Picking up a stone, very similar in size and shape to the first, she drew in a deep breath and pulled her arm back. She released the stone, and it bounced on the water twice before sinking to the bottom of the freezing lake. I sighed happily. "I guess I was wrong."

Suddenly, a small dog ran up to Jen and began nipping at her shoes. She laughed and bent down to pet it. We heard a rustle in the trees behind us, and a boy came into view. He looked extremely familiar, though I couldn't quite remember where I'd seen him before.

A smile broke out onto his face as soon as he saw the dog with Jen. "Looks like he's found a new friend." The mysterious boy squatted down and clapped his hands together. "Daryl! C'mere buddy!" The dog went into his arms, licking the boy's face. "He always manages to get away from me when I take him out."

Jen smiled and raised her eyebrows. "You named your dog Daryl?"

The boy nodded. "Yep. Daryl Dixon. He's named after one of the greatest characters on one if the greatest shows on TV." Jen looked a bit puzzled. "The Walking Dead?" The boy said. Jen just giggled and shrugged.

"Where have I seen you before?" I asked, finally. The boy smiled.

"Probably my cousin, Michael, from Issues. My name's Mason. It's cool to meet you, Austin." Things began to make sense. He knew who I was, but stayed cool. He'd probably met dozens of other people because of Michael. He shifted his gaze over to Jen, who never broke her gaze off of him. "And this, I'm assuming is Jen." She nodded and smiled.

"That's me." She said cheerfully, color rushing to her cheeks. And I had a feeling that it wasn't because of the cold.
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(Jen's POV)

I felt my cheeks flare up as Mason said my name. I grew extremely self conscious, all of a sudden. The scars on my face were still healing. What did he think of them? Was he judging me? Did he want anything to do with me at all?

"Jen?" Mason's voice pulled me out of y paranoid thoughts.

"What?" I asked cluelessly. He smiled at me and I got weak in the knees. "I asked if you maybe wanted to hang out for a bit."

I didn't know what to say. Of course I wanted to hang out with him. But I thought about all the times I'd let down my defenses and how it all backfired. So I reached a compromise.

"Yeah, but can we hang out on our bus? For....reasons?" My cheeks grew redder. For 'reasons.' Seriously?

Mason just smiled. "Of course we can." He stepped a bit closer. "Let me take Daryl back to my place and I'll meet you guys over here. I hope you're ready, because I'm forcing you to watch the Walking Dead." He said with a cute grin. I felt myself smiling back.

We waved goodbye and Austin smirked at me, raising his eyebrows. I punched him in the arm.

Short filler chapter. Sorry for lack of excitement. I have much more in store for this story. Patience is a virtue.

I hope most of you like Mason so far, because he's going to develop into a much bigger character. Picture of him is attached.

Chapter song: Move Into Light by Juventa (Koven Remix)

-Gracie