( crash into me )

[leighton]

xx
i drown out all my sense
with the sound of its beating.

Was she nuts? How could she possibly put herself through such pain and misery? I'd walk through fire for Jackson, she thought. This battle inside her head was of epic proportions and neither side seemed to want to let go. While the team Jackson side controlled her body, making her legs trudge forward in the chilly weather. Catherine Fairfax was dressed accordingly in tight black vinyl pants, red peep-toe heels, a white wife beater under a motorcycle jacket and gray scarf. Her hair was adorned with a pencil that held it up in a messy bun. In one of her fingerless gloves she held the red guitar case that held her pride and joy. The other was stuffed in the pocket of her jacket, tracing the edges of her Blackberry Storm.

Complex brown orbs surveyed the green. No Jackson yet. Striding over to the coffee cart she waited patiently in line. The girl in front of her screamed prep, from her argyle sweater to her headband adorned blond locks. She was fussing over her complicated ordered, that apparently hadn't been completed to a 't'. Sighing Catherine tapped her toe on the cement impatiently. The love of her life would be here any minute and this prissy bitch was complaining about coffee. Once she finally left in a huff the tall, gangly guy working smiled apologetically.

"Hi. I'll take a chai tea please. Large."

She added a tense smile for affect and hoped to God he could see through her phony kindness. It took a few minutes for her blessed chai to be done and she did a little dance to keep warm. She lived on the East Coast her whole life for Pete's sake. Catherine Fairfax should be used to cold weather. The smile was real when he gave her the hot beverage and her change. The guy blushed softly and she wondered why. It wasn't like a girl as plain as her smiling could make a guy swoon. She thought better than to dwell on this matter. Better to save it for private time in her loft.

Catherine practically ran to the little bench in the middle of the green. She placed her chai and guitar case down next to her. After pulling out her jet black guitar and gulping down some chai, she rested the acoustic on her knee. She strummed unconsciously, looking for the right music to fit her new song. She was in the middle of this process when Jackson had IM'd her. She closed her eyes to the world and began to sing.

"You said 'be careful its delicate,
things can just crumble apart',
but it's not the same for me,
it's not the same for me."

ooc-hehe like the title?

that's what you get
when you let you heart win

[jackson]

JACKSON COLE

Jackson shoved his feet into his plain white tennis shoes and grabbed his black pea coat from the edge of his bed. Peeking in the mirror of his desk, Jackson shrugged as his appearance. His hair was a mess, but he was wearing a nice turtle-neck blue sweater. But really, he did not feel the need to dress up. Maybe it was his particularly down mood, or maybe it was because he was not really going anywhere all that special. He nodded a small goodbye to his rather horrible roommate and exited the dorm room. A short while later, Jackson exited the dorm hall all together. The air was crisp - he was glad he grabbed his coat. But it was not too cold today to the point where he would be uncomfortable for an hour or two outside. It was probably the "warmest" day they had had in a couple weeks, and Jackson was thankful for that. He seemed to be quite busy today.

First, he went to the theater to practice his singing skills - he got beat out in a musical audition because one of the actors could sing better than Jackson. And then, well, Paige showed up. Tears and harsh words were said. Then everything kind of heated up and melted, which resulted in a shared kiss. Of course, this complicated things extremely. Jackson had broken up with Paige after hearing a rumor that she cheated on him. Now, he was dating Holly-Ann. So, technically, he cheated on Holly-Ann. What a vicious circle.

Jackson made the short walk to the main grounds of the Washington University of Arts campus. He had just logged of his computer after agreeing to an emergency meeting with Catherine. With his current situation, he needed to hang out with someone stress-free. Someone like his best friend, Cat. Though Jackson could feel a connection between them, he never thought of it in a more-than-friends way. Little did he know, that is exactly how the pretty brunette felt about him. But Jackson, as pathetic as he was, never saw this. He was always too wrapped up in Paige or Holly-Ann (now both of them) to notice that side of Cat.

Immediately, he spotted Cat sitting on a bench with her guitar. Jackson could pick her out in a sea of people. But luckily, the green was not too packed today. Jackson slid onto the bench next to Catherine with a smile pinned on his face. Despite his rough day, seeing Cat always made him smile. He adored her music skills. "Hey, you."

word count: 429.
notes: perfect title (: hehe.

[leighton]

xx
i drown out all my sense
with the sound of its beating.

"so i kept treading so carelessly
thin lines that splintered my ground
but i closed my eyes to them
i closed my eyes to them"

Catherine's eyes were still closed when she felt the slight change of the temperature. Her eyes snapped open when she heard the sweetest voice. Hey you. As Cat turned slowly, she thought of how she would greet him. "I love you,"; "Oh...hi"; "Neither Holly-Ann nor Paige deserve you"... Her painted red lips turned up in a soft smile. He was just so perfect in his imperfection...

"Hey Jax,"she said in her breathy voice.

She briefly rested her head on his shoulder as a greeting. As all this was happening she was still strumming. Catherine knew Jackson, and it took him a while to actually begin to talk about what was bugging him. The melody was soft and graceful and matched the song perfectly. When she finished, she set her guitar flat on her lap and then grabbed her chai, sipping casually as she surveyed the green. It was a ghost town today, which was odd considering the relatively nice weather. She actually expected hoards of people to be out here, basking in the October sun.

The wooden bench they sat on was spacious enough for Cat to pull up her feet and kick him lightly. It was her silent way of grabbing his attention. Her heart raced to unusually high rates whenever she looked into Jackson gorgeous eyes. She imagined herself walking with him, her fingers entwined with his. The idea almost made her cry because he was so beautiful and she was almost shamefully plain. Catherine kept a cool face as she tilted her head to the side and waited for him to speak...Maybe this time she'd have to coax it out of him.

"So Jax...Anything going on in your life? Something interesting?"

Cat smiled. It was supposed to be a joke. She wanted to keep the conversation light and amusing. The one thing she couldn't deal with was having to comfort the love of her life about being in love with someone else. It was too hard... And yet she still managed to get herself into situations such as these. Never in her life had she said no to him and she couldn't see it changing anytime soon. God her life was pathetic. Why couldn't she just tell him and get it over with? She knew the answer to that question all too well. Catherine Fairfax was afraid the sting of rejection would her worse than watching the love of her life be happy with someone else.

that's what you get
when you let you heart win

[jackson]

JACKSON COLE

Jackson sat there, Catherine's head on his shoulder - and in return, his head on her head - listening to her strum away at her guitar. It was enough to calm him, to calm the roughest seas. Her voice could surely be his lullaby on repeat when he was dozing off to sleep. Maybe one day, she would record an album, and Jackson would have exactly that. He'd be able to tell people the new amazing music artist was his best friend, Cat. The one he had known for too many years to even count. The one he only thought of as a friend and was completely blind to her feelings for him, even though everyone around them could see it. Jackson was self-centered in that kind of way. He never really thought to ask Catherine who she had her sights on - but then again, she never told. Jackson seemed to be the one will all the relationship issues.

Jackson rolled his eyes lightheartedly as Catherine faced him with the big question. But he decided to play along, not wanting to get all deep and upset right now. "Oh not much really...just kissing a few girls a day. Cheating on my girlfriend. Not much. Same old, same old." Jackson winked at her and flashed her an innocent smile. But then, the silly moment was over and Jackson looked down at his hands that were folded neatly in his lap. He chewed on his lip for a moment - a horrible nervous habit he had always had. "I don't what to do, Cat. Tell me what to do." There was a hint of desperation in his voice. "I love Paige." He said, his voice small and quiet. "But Holly-Ann...she is just so sweet. She's great." Jackson ran a hand through his already messy hair. Then he repeated again, "I don't know what to do, Cat."

word count: 317. shorrt. sorry. gotta go to bed! haha.

[leighton]

( cat )

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Catherine grinned when he played along with her joke. She thanked God that she didn't blush scarlet when he winked at her. It might have had something to do with him talking about two other girls. But as soon as his head fell, his face somber, she galvanized into best friend mode. Quickly scooting close to him, she rested her chin on his shoulder blade. It seemed her petite chin was made for the slight dip in his back. She couldn't remember a time when they didn't pick this position to talk about each other's problems. When she was having problems, his strong chin fit on her back as well. As Jackson talked about Paige and Holly-Ann she tried her best to stifle the choking noise she made. How could he love Paige? Hadn't she cheated on him? And Holly Ann... They both knew it wasn't working so why did they insist on banging away at it?

"M-maybe you need to cool Jax...you know with b-both of them."she said, clearing her thought.


Catherine told herself this was the right thing to say as his best friend. The best friend with crush had nothing to do with this comment. Both people knew she was lying to herself... It was just too hard seeing him with someone else. For once she wanted him to be actually able to dream of her. The love she had for him was driving her mad, it seemed. Sighing, Cat waited patiently for his answer. She saw two options to go from here. One: he wouldn't take her advice, marry Paige, become a famous actor and forget all about her. Two: he would realize how much she loved him, fell for her, married her and they would be famous together. Laughing at herself seemed a likely option after this was done with. Jackson Cole had gotten her to think like a fourteen year old girl. Not even when Catherine Fairfax was fourteen, did she think like a fourteen year old. Absent-mindedly, she strummed her guitar, which was laying flat on her lap.

ooc: ugh shit post. sorry c!

[jackson]

JACKSON COLE

Jackson shrugged, and took Catherine's stuttering as a symptom of the chilly air outside. "Why?" He prompted, glancing sideways at her. For some reason Jackson could not seem to read into, Catherine was always against him dating. Now, it was sort of a realistic suggestion. "I mean," He started before waiting for her answer to his previous question, "Wouldn't it be hell to just make them wait like that?" Jackson bit his lip, and then spoke again. "One of them is going to get heartbroken, which in turn will hurt me, but I have to date who I am most happy with. You know?" Deep down, Jackson knew who that was. He knew he wanted to be with Paige again. But he knew that it would hurt Holly-Ann and any sort of friendship they had or could have potentially had. He had fun with Holly-Ann, there was no denying that. She was free and fun and good for him, and he knew he could possibly one day fall in love with her if they lasted long enough.

That was what was truly hard for him - not knowing who would be the better choice in the long run. "Either way, someone is going to get hurt. So why make them wait any longer?" Finally, Jackson closed his mouth and stopped outwardly thinking. He slumped against the bench and rested his head on the top of it, waiting for some kind of input from his best friend, Catherine.

"Do you think I should tell Holly-Ann?" Jackson looked at Catherine, quizzically. "That I kissed Paige?" Or just break up with her without any sort of explanation, if that's what I decide to do. - that is what Jackson wanted to say out loud. But for now, Jackson decided not to share these particular thoughts with Catherine. He wanted to know what she truly believed, and not throw a biased view of his own in her face.