You're the One - Part 1 || Greta Van Fleet

Chapter 4: Not Like That

When we got back to the van, Danny and Sam quickly made their way up the stairs. Jake followed slowly behind, peeking back before eventually closing the door behind him. Josh took my hand and helped me out of the van.

"You okay, mama?" He asked, pulling me closer to him. I could feel my cheeks blushing so I avoided eye contact.
"You guys drink like this all the time?" I asked, he giggled.
"Not quite. Just getting it out of our system before we have to play every night."
"Then I should be okay." I managed. I looked down at our hands, his fingers still intertwined within mine. He started to gently swing our arms until we reached the bus, where he turned his back to it, leaning against the door. I looked up at him, not letting go of his hand in order to keep my balance.

"Well, I had fun tonight." He finally said, staring back at me. His eyes had gotten sleepier, his face more flushed. Was he actually blushing now?
"You're blushing." I said. His eyes got wide as he smirked at me, letting go of my hand and crossing his arms. He giggled.
"Well.. I, um.. we, uh.. we should head in, hm?" He asked. I nodded, following him inside and shutting the door behind me.

When we got inside, Josh plopped down on the couch across from Sam. Danny was already in his bunk, along with Jake who peeked up from his phone as I walked by. My cheeks burned. I made my way into the back room, practically falling onto my bed. The room was still spinning, and laying down didn't help. Soon enough, the lights went off in the front of the bus. I mustered up whatever strength I could and managed to get up to close my door. I saw Jake sitting at the end of his bed, his legs dangling over the edge. The other 3 boys seemed to have already passed out.

"Hey.." I whispered. He looked up.
"Hey.." I motioned for him to come over. He sighed, taking a minute before pushing himself off the bed and making his way over to the doorway.
"What is it?" he asked. He looked exhausted.
"Can.. can you, uh.. can you help me with the air conditioning in here?" I asked.
"Sure.." he sighed, making his way into the back room.

I sat down on my bed as he walked over to the unit, picking up the remote and pressing some of the buttons. It eventually turned on, and he tossed the remote over to me.
"There you go." He said simply.
"Thank you." I said, he nodded, looking back at me.
"I'm not usually like that, you know." It slipped out. He was quiet for a minute.
"Like what?" he asked, making his way over to the bed. He sat down on the edge, turning to face me.
"Like.. that. Though, I didn't really have much say. It was all Josh." Jake nodded, looking away again.
"I just.." I started. I bit down on my lip. "I just wanted you to know."
"You can do whatever you want." he said simply. "But that is my brother."
"I.. I know. That's why I wanted you to know. I'm here to do a job. I'm not one of those girls who... are all over the guys in the band. That's.. not who I am." He stayed quiet.
"I would just really like a friend here." I said softly. He nodded. The longer he stared back at me the more I felt my heart start to race. I was hoping it was dark enough where he couldn't see my beet red face.

"And nothing happened." I said. His silence was driving me crazy. "Outside. Nothing happened." I saw a small smile spread across his lips. I couldn't help but smile back.
"I would have heard about it tomorrow if it did, anyway." He said, smirking at me. I rolled my eyes, running my fingers through my hair.

"He likes you though." Jake finally said. "Josh.. he likes you.. I can tell. In case it wasn't obvious." He laughed. I looked down at my hands, and then to his.
"Was it the hand holding that gave it away?" I asked. He laughed.
"It might've been, yeah. But.. he's not always like that either. He.. really is a good guy." I was quiet.
"You should get some sleep." He finally said, standing up from the bed. I continued looking up at him as he made his way to the doorway.
"Here.." he said, walking out, coming back in with a sweater. He handed it to me.
"Sometimes the AC gets cold. That'll help."
"Thanks, Jake." I said, holding my stare. He nodded, and made his way back into the bunk area, sliding the door shut behind him. I waited until I heard him climb into his bunk to pull the sweater over my head. It was a dark shade of red and green, perhaps his grandfather's hand-me-down, and slightly oversized.

And it smelt just like him.