I Don't Belong To Anyone - one shot
Pairing: Jalex/Taylex
Rating: PG-13
Summery: Alex has to pick between his girlfriend, Tay and his office assistant, Jack.
Disclaimer: Don't own All Time Low or Tay Jardine. Title is from Homewrecker by Marina and the Diamonds
A/N: I've been thinking about this for a couple days and yeah, I just decided to write it. Comments would really be appreciated because I'm not sure about it. akldfjkdfj
Tonight was the night, Alex was finally going to break things off with his long time girlfriend, Tay. He wasn't exactly happy about this; he didn't want to hurt the girl. It's been 7 years since they first started seeing each other, the couple have been inseparable ever since they first met. Until lately. The two have been having more problems in the past couple months than they've had the rest of their relationship. He knew it wasn't their fault, just the situation they were in. He also knew that unless she got pregnant like, now, they weren't going to be able to pick up the pieces of their almost broken relationship.
To be honest, even now, there was a small chance of things getting back to normal. Even if Tay did finally get pregnant, it wouldn't change the mess Alex has become. It wouldn't change the late nights Alex has been having with his best friend or the horrible secrets he's been keeping.
It was 9 PM on a Tuesday night. Alex had just gotten home from work. Him and his assistant stayed late, as per usual. Jack had brought in a picnic basket and insisted they sit on the floor of Alex's office as they watched the sun set out the large windows.
As he opened the door, he couldn't contain his smile. For the past 7 months, he's done a great job at keeping his second relationship a secret. Nobody knew, not even his best friends. He knew Zack and Rian would freak out if they ever found out. However, tonight was a different story. Jack and Alex had talked for hours about how badly Alex needed to leave Tay and Alex had finally admitted he would do it. He wasn't really scared anymore.
"I'm home!" He called into the house, raising an eyebrow at the quiet. Usually Tay greeted him as soon as he walked through the door.
"I'm in the bathroom," she called. Not caring about what was going on behind the door, Alex walked straight though without knocking. He wanted to make this as quick and painless as possible.
He stopped short when he saw his girlfriend sitting on the side of the bathtub, with 4 pregnancy tests around her. She was holding one, tears falling down her face. "What's... is something wrong?" He asked, suddenly feeling like a complete asshole.
Without saying a word, Tay showed him the screen on the stick. Two little black lines showed. Alex's breath caught in his throat. "You're pregnant..." he whispered. He made is way to the tub to sit beside her, pulling her into a tight side hug. "We finally did it," he kept whispering.
To say the least, Alex was shocked. The doctors always said there was a very low chance of Tay ever being able to get pregnant and he had kind of given up on the chance of it happening when he realised his feelings for Jack.
Tay stayed quiet and sobbed into his chest, leaving a large wet mark just below his neck. They sat there for what seemed like hours; him rubbing her back and playing with her hair, her repeating through sobs, "I can't believe it."
Once Alex finally got the very emotional girl to bed, he walked out onto the back deck and pressed the number 2 button on his speed dial to call Jack. He tapped his feet as he waited for the younger boy to pick up.
Jack was excited when he first answered the phone, he had a million questions. He spent the whole night just wandering his small apartment, trying to find something to do. He was scared as hell as to what was going on at the other boys house. Before he could ask probably about the 12th question, Alex cut him off.
"She's pregnant." He breathed out and sat down in the grass, covering his eyes with his free hand.
"You're kidding," Jack said, not believing him. Alex heard movements through the phone. "You're here, aren't you?" Jack continued. "If I come outside, you'll be sitting in your car waiting for me to come help you with your stuff." He knew Jack was heading out to his balcony to see if he was there.
Alex sighed loudly. "Jack, listen to me. She's pregnant. She took four different tests. I'm staying here. I won't be there tonight..." he trailed off and sighed again. "Or any other night.." his voice cracked.
For a few moments, both Jack and Alex stayed on the phone not saying anything. Eventually one of them hung up; it wasn't exactly clear which boy pressed the end button.
Alex chucked his phone across the lawn and let out a small moan, trying to hold in his tears. He hated himself for hurting Jack and he hated Tay for getting pregnant at the worst possible time. He broke down and cried, burying his head in both of his hands to muffle the noise.
Just a ten minute drive away, Jack was doing the same thing. Now sitting on his couch with his knees pulled up to his chest, he ran his fingers through his skunk coloured hair as a few lost tears fell down his cheeks. Only 5 minutes ago, he was so excited to be able to start his life with Alex. He had made sure that tonight would be the night that Alex was going to leave his girlfriend. He hated himself for believing it was really going to happen.
-----
Eight weeks after the night that Alex made the decision to stay with Tay, the two ran into eachother at the grocery store.
The day after Alex broke things off, Jack quit his job at the office. He figured there was no point in staying if the only reason was still there was ripped away from him.
Alex never bothered calling him again. He was too scared. Jack didn't really mind, he knew that if they did have contact, he would say something he would later regret.
But neither boy went a day without thinking about the other.
That's why, on the Saturday afternoon, it was a shock to both boys when they saw eachother. Alex was in the frozen pizza isle, trying to remember the kind Tay wanted. Jack as always was just looking for a quick meal. When neither of them were looking, their shoulders collided.
"Sorry, I'm so sorry!" Jack said, stumbling backwards a few feet. Alex's head snapped up at the sound of the boys voice. It sounded too familiar.
"J-Jack?" He choked, his tinted gold eyes widening.
"Oh," Jack frowned when he realised who it was. A cold look passed his face. He still hadn't forgiven Alex for hurting him. "I, um, I have to go.." he looked down at the floor, clearly flustered. He just needed to get out of there. He turned to leave, but froze when he felt Alex's hand on his shoulder.
"Jack?" Alex asked with a little more force in his voice. He just wanted to talk. "Jack, hi." he gave a small smile when Jack turned around.
"Hi," Jack mumbled, still looking everywhere else except straight in front of him. He knew he should probably say something. Ask about Tay, or see how Alex has been the past few months. Part of him didn't want to know the answer, though. He knew it would break his heart if Alex said they were both doing wonderful. So, he decided to stay quiet.
"Jack, I've missed you so much!" Alex looked at him, almost pleading for his old friend to look or talk to him. "Please, talk to me. We could get coffee or something?" He got hopeful but then remembered Tay and the pizza. "Later. We could meet up later. At the coffee shop around the corner. Please?"
They stayed silent in the middle of the frozen isle, Alex waiting for a response and Jack debating his answer. Eventually he nodded, a small smile making his lips part. "That would be nice," he agreed.
-----
Two hours later, both boys were in their cars, driving to meet up. Both had butterflies in their stomach, their minds were racing a thousand miles per second. Neither were really sure what was going to come of this or why they were even going.
Alex had made up some bullshit excuse to Tay about where he was going. He said he was going in to work for an emergency meeting. That would buy him hours of time; he wouldn't have to worry about getting home too late.
And Jack, well, the only person living in his cramped apartment with him was his dog. He gave him a dog bone as a treat and a scratch behind the ears before leaving, knowing that it wouldn't matter when he came back because no one would really care.
Alex waited until he knew Jack was in the coffee shop for sure before getting out of his car. Scanning the room was hard once he walked in, it was extremely busy. He was grateful when he saw Jack sitting at a corner table.
It was quiet for a few minutes after Alex sat down, neither of them really knew what to say. It was a typical small talk conversation. They asked how they other was, talked about the weather.
It was uncomfortable. Nothing like how they used to be.
Finally, Jack couldn't take the silence anymore. "Why'd you ask me to come here, Lex?" He looked up at the boy with sad puppy dog eyes. He didn't mean to call him by his old nickname, it just sort of came out.
Alex's heart skipped a beat when he heard the name. "I miss you," he admitted. "I miss you so much."
Jack shook his head, trying not to scoff at the boy across the table. "Bullshit, Alex. If you missed me so much, why haven't you called? Why did you even pick her in the first place?"
"I... I had to, Jack. I had to..." his voice grew softer, knowing the words coming out of his mouth weren't true. "She's pregnant. With my child. I'm going to be a father. I couldn't just leave her by herself to deal with all of this. It wouldn't be fair."
"You didn't have to do anything. You could have left her, just like you were planning to! What if she found out she was pregnant after that night, would you have ran back to her?"
Alex shook his head vigorously. "No. No, if I was with you... I wouldn't have gone back. Of course not."
Jack sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. He looked across the table and felt a mix of confusion in his gut. He hated Alex, more than he has ever hated anybody. Still, he had a strong urge to stop this fight just to kiss him. He shut his eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to clear his mind. There was no way he was going to do that. He couldn't kiss Alex.
Alex on the other hand, was thinking the same thing. How badly he missed Jacks lips on his. As Jack closed his eyes tight, he kept staring at him. "Jack...?" He asked gently and watched his eyes flutter open again.
"Yeah?" Both of their voices were softer now, more unsure of what was going on.
"Can we just... forget this ever happened? Start fresh?"
Jack nodded slowly, agreeing to what seemed like the impossible. "Fresh. We can start fresh." There was no reason not to try, he thought to himself. He might as well.
Alex nodded. "That would be nice."
Although both boys knew it would be hard, they knew it was impossible for them to stay apart. Even before they developed feelings for each other, they were best friends. It was hard losing that.
The night went on pretty well from there. They both went through about a pot of coffee each as they sat at the table and just talked about anything and everything. As they were getting up to leave a few hours later, Jack pulled the shorter boy into a tight hug. "I've missed you," he mumbled into Alex's hair.
"I've missed you too," Alex mumbled back and pressed his palms tightly into Jack's back.
The feelings each boy had for the other haven't changed, even after two months of being apart. They could both feel the tention in the hug and pulled away.
Once getting into the fresh cold night, Alex stuffed both his hands into his pockets. He walked Jack to his car just so they could have more time together. "You'll call me sometime, right?" He asked as Jack unlocked his drivers door.
"Yeah," Jack nodded as his signature grin filled his face. "Yeah, I will. Real soon."
Just before he got into the car, Alex took the small space between the two boys in two long strides. Wrapping his arms around Jack's neck, he leaned in for a kiss. Blocking his mind from all things Tay related, he kept kissing, waiting for Jack to kiss back.
After just a few moments, they were pulled into a deep kiss. After having to stop for air, they both stared at the other with their foreheads pressed together. "Alex," Jack breathed hard. "Come with me. Get in the car. Lets go. We can go anywhere." He didn't want Alex to go back to Tay. He couldn't lose him again.
Alex was lost in the moment. He nodded, still pressed against Jack. Jack smiled wide. Maybe they really were going to have their fairy tale ending.
Quickly, both boys got into Jacks car. Jack pulled away from the curb, scared Alex would change his mind. It was after all completely spur of the moment. They headed off in the direction of his house. They would get a few of Jacks things and then leave. Before Tay could make Alex change his mind.
Shortly after stopping at Jack's house, they were on the road again. So far, neither of them had backed out.
Finally, Jack thought. Finally, this was happening. He could have Alex all to himself.
It was two hours later by the time Alex realised what he was doing. He couldn't just leave his home. He couldn't leave Tay. "Stop." He raised his voice. "Jack, STOP THE CAR," he was screaming now. He banged on the dashboard. "I need you to stop!"
Jack shook his head. "I can't do that, Alex. I need you to come with me. You can't go back to her. Don't leave me again!" He started speeding.
"Jack, please!" Alex looked at him with pleading eyes. "I need to go home."
Jack glanced over at the boy sitting next to him. He saw tears run down his face. His heart broke at the realisation that he really did need to stop the car. The blond was now banging on the door, trying to get it unlocked. Alex was getting out of that car, if Jack let him or not.
Jack pulled over to the side of the road and stared at Alex. "Alex. I love you. Please." He tried to reach for Alex, he tried to calm him down. Eventually through the tears, Alex figured out how to unlock the door. He jumped out and shakily walked away from the car, not turning back.
Hearing Jack behind him, Alex kept walking. He just needed to get away. His legs gave out eventually as he made his way down into the ditch. Letting himself collapse, he sat in the grass and cursed to himself.
Alex knew Jack was behind him, he could feel his eyes on the back of his head. Shakily, he pulled out his phone.
"Alex. Don't," Jack pleaded. "Please don't."
Ignoring the boy, Alex pressed his number 1 caller on speed dial. "Tay?" He asked after a couple of seconds. "Tay... I need you to come pick me up."