Wake Up| JATP

Chapter 2

"What the hell?" She repeated crawling backwards. Her hands shook and her heart beat rapidly against her rib cage like a locked up animal. She looked over their faces again and again, seeing if her eyes were playing tricks on her. "N-Nicole?" Tears spilled over her eyes and she let out a loud sob that she desperately tried to keep in, holding her hand over her mouth. She shook her head side to side, trying to shake them away, the memories away, the pain away. It had taken her so long to come to terms with their death, to realise, that there would never be another band rehearsal or song writing session with Luke. Never going to be another moment where Nicole could sit with her boys and Marley. She stood up slowly, using the sign as support because if she didn't she would probably collapse there and then. The boys copied her actions. They all seemed just as confused and nervous as she did, all of them looking back and forth between each other. "I-I don't understand. How- why are you dead?" Nicole gulped, not wanting to tell them she killed herself because she couldn't handle their death. "What are you doing here?" Alex was the first to step forward, looking the small blonde girl up and down. "God it really is you." Nicole nodded her head slowly, tackling the boy in a hug. He stumbled a little before wrapping his arms around the girl he had known his whole life. "Eww you stink like hot dogs." Alex laughed lightly pulling away. "Ok that's not funny, that's how we died." The girl cringed slightly, which didn't go unnoticed by all of the boys. "Oh Reggie! I've missed you so much." She tackled him in a hug too, squeezing him hard as he wrapped his arms around her small frame. "Yeah missed you too Nicole but I need to breathe." She quickly let go and her eyes averted to Luke. He stood there his hands tied behind his back and his head hanging low. Her and Luke didn't exactly end on good terms. They had a huge argument moments before the legendary Sunset Curve's death and everyday Nicole regretted her last words to him. "I hate you!" She remembered how angry she was, how he had really hurt her, bringing her family and home life into the argument. She remembered how she regretted the words as soon as they came out of her mouth but she was young and stubborn, meaning she didn't take them back and she didn't apologise. Although she wish she could take the words back, it didn't  mean she forgave him, it wouldn't be easy to forgive him. They had both thrown around harmful words, hurting one another.

"Still mad at me huh?" Hearing his voice for the first time in 24 years was definitely painful. It sounded hurt and upset. Exactly the way she didn't want it to sound. When they were kids, she would come running to his house, climbing through his bedroom window, whenever her mum and dad were doing some sort of drug in the house which made them angry, and they would take it out on her. She would sit on his bed, sobbing into his chest whilst he sang her favourite song, until she fell asleep. That's the Luke she wanted back, the Luke she wanted to hear again. "We hurt each other Luke, a lot, you know that just as much as I do, it may have been a long 24 years for me but that doesn't mean I can forgive you for what you said, but I'm willing to try." He nodded his head hesitantly and his mouth opened and closed again, stopping himself from saying something.

The 4 were back to themselves in no time, apart from Luke and Nicole obviously, their friendship still remained rocky but it wasn't awkward like she imagined. By the time the sun had risen, the 4 ghosts had teleported to the boys old studio. They had caught Nicole up on their situation and she was rather excited to meet this Julie girl they all had talked about. Things were changing.