This is a long chapter, guys (I set a timer and read through it all and it took me almost 9 minutes)! Enjoy!

Jenna

"So what are some qualities that makes you think you'd be good at this job?" Tyler asks me from the other side of the kitchen island. He brought me over to Josh's house today to fill out some paperwork for my job. I'm pretty sure an interview isn't required since he personally knows me, but I think he's doing it just for fun.

"Um...well..."

"If an alien abducted you, name three reasons why it would keep you and three reasons why it would send you back!" Josh yells from the top of the stairs.

"Well, that's one way to put it," Tyler states. He looks at me, shuffling the stack of papers in his hand. "So, Miss Black, why would an alien want to keep or return you?"

"Well...it would probably want to keep me because I guess I'm cheerful to be around, I'm helpful, and...well, I cook well." I start laughing awkwardly. Tyler joins in.

"Okay, and why would it return you?"

I take a deep breath. "Well, it may not be able to handle my amazing personality, I would probably get too comfortable with the alien and his friends, and it would probably get tired of all the dirty dishes lying around from my wonderful cooking."

This sends Tyler into a fit of laughter. "I don't care how many dirty dishes you leave lying around; I'll still enjoy your food." He looks back at the papers. "Okay....why do you want this job, or what made you accept this job offer?"

I clasp my hands together, looking up in thought. "Well, I've always wanted to be a photographer, and I think this job is not only my dream job but also a chance to travel the world and try new things. And as a bonus, I get to do it with my best friends."

Tyler looks up at me from the paper. "Ma'am, I'm gonna have to give you a penalty for trying to charm the interviewer," he jokes with a bad western accent.

"Well...is it working?" I reply.

He slowly grins and hides behind the papers, red starting to color his cheeks. "Maybe."

I laugh. "Goo--"

"TYLER!!!!" Josh suddenly yells, running down the stairs and hurdling the banister halfway down like there's a fire. He sprints into the kitchen, finally sliding to a stop by the fridge.

"Dude, are you okay?" Tyler asks.

"I got a phone call...from Pete Wentz!" Josh pants.

"Wait, the Pete Wentz!?" Tyler asks.

He nods. "He...Fall Out Boy...wants to take us on tour!!!"

"Really!!??" Tyler squeals.
"Yes!!!!" Josh sets his phone on the counter while he and Tyler start doing their intricate handshake.

"Hello? Are you guys still there? I heard screaming. You didn't murder Tyler to be the singer, did you, Josh?" A guy's voice comes from Josh's phone.

"Nah, I would've kicked him out of the band if he did that," Tyler replies. The voice laughs.

"Who's that guy?" I whisper to Tyler.

"Who's that guy--who's that guy!!?? You mean you don't know who I, the great and powerful Pete Wentz is???" the voice says from the phone.

"No...," I trail off.

"Dude, Tyler, whoever this chick is, you gotta take her on tour so she can meet me. She's missing out," Pete says teasingly.

"We'll think about it, but we're definitely going with you guys. This is going to be SICK!"

"Okay. Are you guys in LA right now? We were thinking about meeting up with you to talk about the tour plans. We'll have to set up a time to come and see you guys. A'ight?"

"Great," Tyler replies. "Is there anyone else touring with you guys?"

"Just Panic! At The Disco," he states.

Tyler's face flushes white like he just saw a ghost. "Uh, o-okay, sounds great. We'll get back to you sometime," he stutters. "Thanks, Pete."

"Yeah thanks, Pete!" Josh chimes in before hanging up the phone.

"Uh...Josh, can I talk to you?" my brown-haired friend asks nervously.

"Yeah, sure." The two boys walk out of the kitchen and turn right towards the hallway. A door shuts, and all is quiet for a few minutes. What's going on?

Tyler

"Dude, Panic! Is touring with them??? We can't take her!" I whisper-yell to Josh even though I'm pretty sure Jenna can't hear us from the kitchen.

"What happened in high school was a long time ago," Josh replies calmly. "Brendon has probably moved on by now. It's been long enough."

"But he kidnapped her, Josh!"

"We probably don't have enough evidence to accuse him of that anyways, and besides, I'm pretty sure he got married back in March or something."

"That doesn't matter. I don't want her being uncomfortable the whole tour."

"Well, going on tour is something for her to decide," Josh replies simply. "So I suggest we go out and talk to her."

I sigh, running my hands through my hair. "You're right. I guess that's the best thing to do."

Jenna

Tyler and Josh reappear a few minutes later. The two take a seat across from me at the island. Tyler taps on the counter and exhales loudly.

"Okay, so it's completely up to you on whether or not you want to go on tour with us. We don't want to pressure you into doing anything you don't want to do."

My brows furrow. "Why wouldn't I want to go on tour with you?"

"Well...you see..." Tyler starts.

"Panic! At The Disco is touring with us," Josh finishes.

"And...?" I raise my eyebrows.

Tyler sighs. "Google its band members."

"Okay..." I reply, pulling out my phone. I click on Safari and type in panic at the disco members.

Results:

Dallon Weekes

Spencer Smith

My heart stops when I reach the last name.

Brendon Urie

Wait, as in the Brendon Urie!? I click on the name, which links to a Google search. I hit images, my eyes widening. Brendon Urie. The same Brendon Urie that kidnapped me in high school. The same Brendon Urie that stole Tyler's car radio, burned his treehouse and kissed me at prom.

Anger shoots through my veins. He's in a band now!!? He doesn't deserve to be!

I click on his Wikipedia biography, reading through various facts about him.

Born: Brendon Boyd Urie

April 12, 1987

St. George Utah, U.S.

Occupation: Singer; songwriter; musician

Years Active: 2004-present

I pause when I read 'spouses'.

Spouses: Sarah Orzechowski

(m. 2013)

I turn off my phone and set it on the counter, then get up and wordlessly walk through the sunroom to the back door. I open the sliding glass and sit down on the back patio, bringing my knees to my chest. I gaze out across Josh's backyard. Brendon never paid for what he did because he never got reported or caught. How could we be so stupid!? We should've told someone!

The sliding glass doors open with a whoosh from behind me. Tyler joins me wordlessly. We don't say anything for a few minutes. Finally, he breaks the silence.

"We understand if you don't want to go. We don't want you to be uncomfortable the whole tour or anything."

I shake my head. "I just wish we told someone after he stole your radio, burned your treehouse, and kissed me at prom."

"We did. He just never got accused. But we can't do anything about it now but move on with life. And even if we did accuse him, he has enough money and power to get himself out of the bind."

"True." We're silent for a moment. "At least Ryan isn't with them anymore. It's just one less person to worry about."

Tyler reaches for my hand, which I let him hold. His fingers intertwine with mine. "As I said, you don't have to go. We understand."

I shake my head. "This isn't high school anymore. I shouldn't let him scare me. Besides, he's married now. His focus will be on someone else. I want to go on tour with you guys."

The brown-haired boy nods. "Okay. We'll have to get back in touch with Pete then." We stand up. Ty gives me a once-over. "You good?"

I nod, and he opens his arms. We quickly embrace.

"Remember, you can always change your mind. We understand," he says.

"Okay," I reply quietly. We walk back inside to see Josh sitting at the island where we left him. Tyler and I sit down.

"So, back to business. We were thinking that you could also work with Mark on social media management. You'd be the one to take pictures and videos during our shows and upload them. I want to get us out there, and social media is probably the best way to do that."

I nod. "Makes sense. What social media do we need?"

"Well, we have a Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Tumblr, and Facebook. We just need help keeping up with posting equally on all of them. I figured that with both you and Mark working together, you guys would be able to handle it pretty well."

"Yeah, I think we will," I reply. I look around. "Speaking of Mark, where is he?"

"He's out with some friends," Josh replies. I nod.

"So...when should we announce that we're touring with Fall Out Boy?" I ask.

"Let's not say anything about it yet. We'll wait until after we meet with them since it's not set in stone," Tyler says.

"Okay. So...back to the paperwork, then?"

He nods. "Sure."

Tyler

I lay in Josh's guest bed, staring at the ceiling in the dim light. Even at midnight, LA doesn't sleep. All of the lights stay on 24/7. I don't get how Josh can live in the middle of the city. It's so noisy and bright, unlike my childhood home at the edge of Columbus.

It would be nice if just one night, all of the lights in all the big cities would go out for an hour. Do you realize how many stars you could see? People wouldn't realize what they were missing until something they used every day got taken away from them.

But then again, would a lot of crime happen in that hour? Would there be vandalism and robbery?

I sigh. There's always a good and a bad side to every situation, just like this tour. I hope Jenna won't regret going on tour with us. I hope Brendon will keep himself in line. I hope he won't bother her.

Hope, hope, hope. Hope gets you nowhere. It's just wishy-washy-wishing.

"Well, looks like it's no sleep for me tonight," I mutter. I climb out of bed and grab my ukulele sitting on a nearby desk, then sit on the edge of the bed. I strum softly, playing random chords until morphing some into a song. I move from March to the Sea to Can't Help Falling in Love to House of Gold to Screen.

You know she's going to hate the tour. She's going to hate you by the end of it for taking her.

"I told her several times that she didn't have to go and that going or not was her choice. I didn't force her into anything," I reply.

Or did you?

I stop playing. "What do you mean?"

She probably felt pressured into going with you guys since you're sooo desperate to have her back in your life. She was probably too scared to say no because she didn't know how that would impact you mentally. What if she just wants to be friends? Do you think she'll really date you again after so much that happened last time? Dating you just leads to trouble.

I snort. "How would you even know? You've never dated me."

It's kind of hard to date yourself, Tyler.

I roll my eyes. "I'm not you."

Mmmm....perhaps you're a copy. A really crappy, cowardly copy of me if I have to say so myself.

"As I said, you're not me. You shouldn't even exist."

You're the one that made me, Tyler. Normal people aren't like this. They don't have voices in their heads. They can carry on with their lives normally without worrying about what others think about them. Most people don't care what others think of them, but I care. I care what you think.

"First of all, you're not a person. Second of all, you caring or not caring what I think is both a blessing and a curse."

There's a good and a bad side to every situation, the voice jeers, mocking my earlier thoughts. I lay back on the bed and sigh, the shadows in the room seeming to grow bigger and darker. Why can't I just be a normal person?

I guess some people are just born luckier than others.

My thoughts are interrupted by a knock on the door. I freeze. Did Josh hear me talking? The knob turns and the door slowly swings open. Sure enough, Josh appears behind it, a cream-colored mug in one hand. I sit up and rub a hand through my already-messy hair.

"H-hey Josh," I greet nervously, totally not acting like I wasn't just having a conversation with my inner demons. "What are you doing up?"

"I couldn't sleep. The Save Rock and Roll tour has got me thinking."

"Same," I reply. Well, it's not exactly a lie. "Is Mark awake, too?"

Josh shakes his head. "Just us. Do you want some hot chocolate?"

I smile. "Sure."

"Here ya go." Josh slides a steaming mug of hot chocolate to me across the marble of the kitchen island before turning back to the microwave to reheat his own.

"Thank you, Mr. Barista."

"Wait, hand it back. It needs one more thing." I pass it back to him and watch as he reaches into the fridge and pulls out a white can. After messing with the mug for another minute, he finally turns back around. The hot chocolate now has whipped cream and a candy cane melting in the warm liquid. I smile.

"Thanks, bro." I stir the whipped cream with my candy cane. "Who keeps this on them year round? That's like having candy corn year round! Wait--please don't tell me you have some of that, too."

Josh grimaces. "No, that stuff is nasty! However, I do keep candy canes here year-round. You never know when you could use one."

"True," I shrug. I stare down at my hot chocolate, then look back up at him. "Do you really think we're making the right decision?"

"Whether Jenna goes on tour or not is only part of your decision. She gets to choose, too, and this is what she wants."

I sigh. "I guess you're right. I just can't help but worry that something will go wrong."

"Well...you can't control the outcome, but you can control how the outcome will affect you," Josh replies. "Now, we should probably go get some sleep. It's"--he squints at the stove clock--"12:35."

"Yeah...let's go to bed." Grabbing our mugs, we go back upstairs to our individual rooms. I lay back down and stare at the ceiling, just like before. Should Jenna really be going on this tour with Panic! Coming along? Should we get back together as more than friends? Should I ask her out? Was the walk in the park considered a date? Did she think it was!?

These questions and more swirl through my head as I finally manage to fall asleep.