Carmen:

"And Haim, cause I fancy the little one!"

I shut my laptop, pushing it away and drawing my knees to my chest as I glanced at the window. The moon was up and filtered in through the shades, and a soft knock at the door broke my train of thought.

"Carmen? Me and the lads are gonna go grab a burger, wanna join?"

I opened and closed my mouth, finally thinking up an excuse. "Uh thanks Bond, but I'm pretty tired so I'm gonna take a nap."

I heard his foot sliding on the floor outside. "Alright, we'll lock the door then."

When Bondy had told me that Van was in the studio with Haim, I didn't think about it much for a split second. And soon a thousand thoughts had come rushing through. Van and Alana. Alana Haim. Who the fuck was Alana Haim?

I burrowed under the comforter, kicking it back and staring at the ceiling. I moved on my stomach and reached for my bag, taking the pack of cigarettes out and lighting one before jamming it into my mouth.

I know I should trust Van. I did, of course I did. But just thinking of him and Alana together in the studio was nausea inducing. I mean, she probably connected with him in more ways than I did, they both had their music. And that was something they would always have in common, always turn to with each other.

I huffed out a smoke, scratching my face. I'd be damned if I was gonna let Van go though. Maybe I'd done it twice before, but it was the last time.

I reached for my phone, opening a message to Van.

Bondy told me you were back at the studio. How about I meet you for dinner near there?

I locked my phone and got up, heading towards the bathroom.

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Van:

"No, that's not right. You should....not have been hoping that." I looked at Alana, who had her eyes drawn to the ground. The obnoxious riff of a guitar made us both snap to look at the source. Este stuck her tongue out, running her fingers through the guitar strings.

"I know. But I did."

"Maybe I should go."

Bondy told me you were back at the studio. How about I meet you for dinner near there?

I wonder if Carmen had a sixth sense. She always seemed to know just when to come back up.

"No Van, don't go. We're going to be working together. And well, I don't want this to do anything to our friendship."

"Well then you shouldn't have said that."

"I've always reasoned it's better to be upfront with feelings." She said unapologetically. I ran fingers through my hair, shutting my eyes. Carmen's text was still open in my other one.

Would love to, let me know when you're near xx

"When you were telling me about your girlfriend, I just, I don't know. Something told me you weren't"-

"Weren't what?"

"Happy." She shrugged.

I let out a laugh of disbelief, "If I wasn't happy I'd fuckin do something about it. But I'm buzzing all the time, when have you ever seen me not?"

"Well I figured that was just who you are. Always happy."

"I'm always happy cause I've got my dream girl by my side. Christ, I-I'm sorry. I think for the sake of our professional relationship"-

"Professional? We're making you look good, we're bringing you up in front of the label," She cut in harshly, "We're doing you a favor."

I was damn surprised by her change in tone. Her whole face contorted into a cold glare. And the bloody nerve to tell me they were doing me a favor. "Well don't do me favors. I'm not a charity case and I don't need them." I stood up, jamming my phone in my jacket pocket and waving at the girls in the studio. They looked at me in confusion. "Tell your sisters I had to go, or don't. Talk shit about me if you want."

"Van"-

"And if you thought you were doing me a favor, did you think I'd have to pay you back with a fuck? You're mad." I brushed past her, ignoring her calling my name.

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She had the engine running, window lowered and her face in one hand. Once she saw me her eyes lit up and she waved.

"Hi beautiful." I slid into the seat, shutting the door behind me. She began to drive, scratching her chin.

"How was the"-

"About me being"-

We both stopped talking, and I took a deep breath. "About me being at the label. It just came up and I couldn't say no. It was just a one time thing, I don't think it's gonna be happenin again any time soon."

"How come?" She asked, turning into a small street.

"Uh, I can't seem to get along with Alana Haim."

"Oh." Her voice was surprised. She parked against the curb, tapping her fingers against the wheel. "Were you guys friends before?"

"Not really, casual acquaintances if you will." I muttered, looking around the street. "But I dunno, don't really find much in common with her. And well she's kind of a big part of the band so ya know..." I let the sentence die off, faking a yawn to make things more casual. "I'm starved, where are we going?"

"Uh, what about that place?" She pointed at the same restaurant I'd went to with the guys and the Haim sisters.

"Uh, I don't know, what about....?" I turned to look around the street for any other place.

"I kinda really want a burrito. Come on." She didn't take no for an answer, throwing the door open and waiting for me to get out too.

She wrapped both hands around mine, looking around the place as she did. I studied her, the way she lazily played with her straw or how her eyes shone when she talked about something funny she'd heard at school. She never failed to get my attention.

I was glad to be able to spend this time alone with her, even though we shared the same bed every night.

Carmen was facing the door, and when her sentence died halfway through and she struggled to make sense of what she'd been saying, I knew something was up. I turned to look, making eye contact with Danielle Haim. She waved excitedly, glancing at Carmen. Danielle turned to say something to Este, while Alana stared at us. Danielle and Este came striding up to our table, Alana a little less enthusiastically.

"Alana said you'd had to run. If you had a date you should've just said we were keeping you Van! Hi, I'm Danielle." Danielle spoke in a quieter voice to Carmen.

Carmen greeted her with a half smile, greeting Este and finally Alana, who looked like she wanted to be anywehere but here. I wished she was, too.

"Would you guys mind if we...?" It took me a long minute to get what Danielle was saying. I didn't want to be rude. Carmen met my eye and nodded.

"Here, I'll sit next to Carmen." I scooted out of my side of the booth and slid in next to Carmen, putting a hand on her thigh. She squeezed it, letting it go to place both hands on the table.

"So where'd you guys meet?" Este asked after they'd ordered drinks.

"Here actually. I met Van at one of Catfish's earlier shows. Amazing how far they've come now." I felt my heart swell at Carmen's prideful tone.

"She knew me back when we were living in hotel rooms and barely making enough to buy cigs." I said with a grin. Este and Danielle were a chorus of awws while Alana scratched her lip and scrolled through her phone.

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Carmen:

Danielle and Este were sweet. Alana, she was just there. I saw Danielle whisper something in her ear and then they both excused themselves to go to the restroom. Este, Van, and I talked about something or other, waiting until our food came.

In about an hour we were saying our goodbyes, Van's arm looped around me the whole time. Alana said a somber goodbye to us both, walking quickly away and making her sisters jog to catch up with her.

"What was her problem?" I asked on the way back home.

"Dunno." Van said, fighting a yawn.

"Are you sure about that?" The question slipped out. I tucked my hair back, pulling to a stop at the light.

"What does that mean?"

"You know Van, I know that you and Alana, a while ago"-

"We weren't anything. I was single and I was drunk and I said that because I thought she was cute. And mind you, I was trying to forget about you." He said, tired.

"So she doesn't feel anything then? Why did she seem so...jealous back there?"

"Because she said she thought I liked her and I told her I didn't. And she pissed me off, thinking that because she was "letting" me write songs for her and her sisters, she deserved something from me." He finally took a breath, shaking his head.

"That's so stupid. Fucking"- I slammed the brakes quickly, jerking us both forward. "Sorry about that."

"And I thought you weren't the angry type." He said with a small smile.

"But honestly Van, that's so stupid of her. If she ever harasses you"-

"Harasses me? I'm a big boy babe. Don't have to worry about her." Van laughed.

"Still. That pisses me off so much." I slid into the parking lot of our building, finding a spot and shutting the engine off.

"Don't go looking for trouble Carmen."

"What you think I'd go fight her?" I slammed the door shut after getting out, falling in step next to him.

"In a fit of passionate rage maybe." He laughed.

"I honestly may fight you Van." We stepped into the elevator.

"But don't worry about it. I'm friends with her sisters sure, but if Alana starts getting weird than I'll just tell her to knock it off. Besides, we're the newest gift to the label, and they can't be bothered with having anyone mess with us." Van smiled, smug.

"Your ego is the size of this whole state I swear." I replied laughing, following him out the elevator onto our floor.

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The months passed by quickly. If anything, I wanted time to slow for a bit. But with Van it seemed like all the time in the world still wasn't enough.

The guys finished up in the studio. I graduated. Graduation was a hot mess, the graduating class huge and the ceremony seeming endless. I just about snatched the diploma from the dean's hand, Van snatching it from mine afterwards and reading from it in a posh accent. I invited Van and the guys of course, my parents, Jesse, and Nicole.

It was the night of graduation that Van surprised me with a graduation gift. A road trip. Just me and him. A weekend away from the city and our lives to just take a break.

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Van:

I forgot how hot the summers in California were. I wanted to get out somewhere cold. I rented a place up in Seattle for the weekend as a surprise for Carmen, and a little trip for ourselves.

We left early Friday, and I refused Carmen's invitation to drive. Even though she sometimes said I drove like a madman. What could I say, I was just getting the hang of driving on the other side of the road.

I held a secret from Carmen. The album was dropping next week. We had ads about it sure, but the release date was still set as to be determined online, even though we'd released two singles and were itchin to just drop it already. I was weary of it being leaked, so I figured a surprise release was better than waiting for someone to surprise us instead.

I was buzzin, just proud of this album. It was massive, even bigger than the first. And I couldn't wait for the fans to hear it. That's also why I'd planned this trip. Because soon enough Carmen and I wouldn't have any time to ourselves anymore. Festivals were lining up, and we'd already booked a couple stadium concerts back in London and Australia for the end of the year. Who knew how long it'd be until I'd have Carmen to myself again.

For now all I focused on was the twist of the roads, and trading off stories with Carmen. It's always so incredible to have this person that you can spend everyday talking to but still find something new to talk about.

It took about an entire day to get there, from our departure in the early morning to getting in at just about five the next day. I rubbed sleep from my eyes, concerned on how I'd driven all the way there without sleeping.

We crashed and woke up when the sky had darkened, clouds hanging over us. We went out to explore and find some food. The cold air felt so nice, a great change from baking away back in LA. Carmen wound her hand around mine and led the way, pointing at places we could stop to eat at.

We ended up at this little pizza place. I kept smiling like an idiot I'm sure, because I was dyin to tell Carmen about the album. She didn't even notice though, too focused on her slice of pizza instead.

Afterwards, we went out and walked around some more. The night was cold, and I jammed both my hands in my pockets while Carmen had her arm looped around mine. She pressed against me, the warmth of her body and the smell of her perfume making me lightheaded. "Let's go back to the hotel no?" I asked casually, but my hands were already wrapping around her waist.

"What, why...?" She stopped asking and rolled her eyes before grinning. "Fine, but we're going out all day tomorrow."

"That's the price I have to pay I guess." I turned her around and we moved past the crowd of people back from where we'd come from.

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Carmen:

Van locked the door behind him, taking a deep breath and turning around to look at me. He wrapped his arms around me, shoving me against him. Our mouths knocked against each others and I let out a short laugh interrupted by Van deepening the kiss and starting to shove me towards the bed.

His fingers played with the button of my jeans, his lips pressing against the side of my throat. He bit the skin gently, and I felt his smile against my neck as a light groan escaped me.

I buried my fingers into his hair as we moved against the bed, his lips pressing lightly against my jaw. He undid the button on my jeans, shoving them down as he ran his tongue down the base of my throat. He pressed his lips against my throat again and again, sucking the skin. It took me a moment to register that he was deliberately trying to cover me with hickeys.

"Van!" I exclaimed, although I don't know what for.

"What?" He asked innocently, reaching to take his shirt off. I took mine off and with our bare skin pressed against each other I began to press my lips against Van's chest, earning a low moan from him. He shifted around so that he was lying on top of me again, wrapping his arms around my thighs and running his lips against them. Goosebumps covered my skin, but I wanted Van to go further. I needed him to.

He met my lips again and tugged my underwear off before biting my lip and moving his head back between my thighs.

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I bit my lip, clenching my thighs together before Van pulled them apart again.

"You didn't think that was all did you?" He grinned.

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I laid on the bed, my body spent. Van pressed his lips against mine, and I grabbed at his face. His hands grabbed at my waist, pressing me against him.

A loud ring from Van's phone interrupted through the silence. "No I'm not answering." Van groaned.

It stopped. Started again. Stopped. Started.

"For fuck's sake." Van yelled, moving away from me.

"'Lo? It wasn't the best, no. What's up? Oh yeah? I figured they weren't gonna want it. No by all means, let them use the song. My name? Well sure. What about it? You're fuckin kidding. What the hell? How did they get it? Of course I'm pissed, but that's better than the.....it's just one song. Besides, we performed it live at some shows, figured people would-uh huh. No Tuesday's still on. Class, thanks mate."

Van hung up the phone and grabbed a pair of briefs from his bag, sliding them on. He came crashing back onto the bed, pushing his hair back.

"Everything ok?" I asked.

"Oh no yeah. Just some album questions. Nothing to ruin this vacation."

"I'm gonna shower." I stood up, grabbing some pjs from my bag. Stepping inside the bathroom and turning the water on, I had a sudden idea and opened the bathroom door, looking at Van. "You're more than welcome to join me."

I'd never seen him move that fast.

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Van:

The trip was of course, too short. Pretty soon it was Monday night and we were pulling back into the apartment building. Carmen fought a yawn, parking the car. She'd finally convinced me to let her drive.

I checked my phone. Twenty minutes to midnight. Twenty minutes till the album dropped.

I offered to carry both our bags, and we walked quickly into the building. Carmen yawned again as we walked down the hall to our apartment, music pounded through the walls of the building.

"I swear if that music's on all night I'm calling the cops." Carmen muttered.

As we stepped closer to our apartment, the music grew louder. I threw the door open and a giant scream echoed off the walls.

"Ya came just in time!" Bondy stepped towards us. I looked around. There were giant posters of The Ride's album cover plastered on the walls. There was a mess of black and green confetti everywhere, and at least fifty people were jammed in our apartment.

"What's"- Carmen looked around, confused. And then realization dawned on her. "Today?!"

"Tomorrow technically. Midnight." I responded. She shoved me.

"When were you going to tell me? Or were you not?" She said in disbelief. People came over and said hi to us, and Carmen only stopped glaring at me to smile and say hello to them. "Our room McCann." She grabbed one of the bags from my hand and I followed her down the hall into our room. I shut the door, and the sound faded a bit.

"It was a surprise."

"I'm going to punch you. And then kiss you." She said, shoving me again.

"Don't do that. How am I gonna look coming out with a black eye to celebrate the album?" I wrapped my arms around her.

She shook her head. "What time is it?"

I checked my phone from my pocket. "Ten till."

"Well let's go back out then."

"Nu uh. Let's live out the release just us two then we can go with the others."

"Are you sure?"

"It's the least I owe you."

"That's true." She responded, flopping back onto the bed. She shut her eyes, rubbing her temple.

"Don't fall asleep on me. You cannot fall asleep Carmen. There's at least fifty people out there waiting for us. Making so much noise."

"I'm not falling asleep." She laughed. "What time is it?"

"A minute has passed."

"Hey, come on then, are yous gonna come out?" Bondy knocked on our door.

"Lay off, we're shagging!" I yelled back.

Carmen laughed. "Van stop!"

"Eight minutes to go." I stood over her. She still had her eyes closed.