Defenceless - jatp/reggie

1.03

later that night, luke had left the studio to talk to julie so it was just alex, reggie and i hanging out.

i was sitting on the couch with my guitar flipping through my song book and working on a few songs. alex was on the chair next to me scrolling through julies laptop. she gave it to us to help us figure out some of the stuff that happened.

"i can't find anything about bobby, it's like he disappeared." alex speaks up. none of us had really been talking.

"he couldn't have disappeared. maybe he just moved after we died?" reggie responds from the loft, where he was still going through our old stuff.

"yeah, maybe." alex shrugs. i set my guitar down beside me and move to behind alex, leaning over his shoulder to see the laptop screen. he was scrolling through a website called youtube and looking at different music videos that julie had saved for us to watch.

luke walked back into the studio a few minutes later with his signature dorky grin, bouncing as he walked.

"good talk with julie?" i smirk at him. he rolls his eyes and jokingly shoves my shoulder.

"i gave her that song bright to sing for her teacher so she can get back in to the music program." he explains.

"that's sick, she gonna rock that song." i smile at him. he looks so proud of himself as he flops onto the couch. i sit back down next to him as he picks up our guitar and starts lightly strumming the melody to Bright.

"yeah she's going to kill it." reggie agrees, finally coming back down from the loft. he had changed out of his leather jacket into a plain black t-shirt. he looks good in black.

i notice myself staring at him for a little too long and silently curse at myself. why am i thinking like this? i've known him for years, nothing has changed except for us dying. can dying make you feel differently about someone?

"hey where did you find that?" reggie points to the sweater i'm wearing.

"i don't know, it was in one of the bags with our clothes." i shrug at him.

"it's mine." he laughs. "that's what i was looking for up there."

"oh sorry," i start to pull the sweater off. "you can have it back."

"no no, it's okay. i just wanted to know where it was." he says, pushing my shoulder to sit back on the couch, and then sitting himself next to me. "it looks good on you." he winks.

reggie has always been a flirt, with everyone. it used to actually bother me a bit, so why is it suddenly making my stomach do flips?

"hey. that's my sister." luke reaches his arm around my shoulders to flick reggies ear.

"chill man, it's just a compliment." reggie defends. "i'd never date Nat, you know that."

"good." luke mumbles, going back to focusing on his guitar.

"what's wrong with me?" i ask jokingly, while secretly being genuinely curious.

"well nothing besides the fact that your last name is Patterson, and so is his." he motions at luke, laughing. then he leans closer to me a lowers his voice slightly. "and i don't want to test it, but i'm pretty sure he's stronger than me." i crack a small smile and nudge his shoulder with mine. he quickly turns away and whispers something to alex before turning back to me and giving me a wink.

what?

~*~

the next day, we poofed in to the gymnasium at julies school as a group called dirty candy was performing.