*Austin’s POV*
13 skipped meals, obsessive amount of caffeine, approximate 15-20 pounds lost, 3 sleepless nights, lack of happiness.

These were all the things I had noticed about Nel in the last week, none of them her usual routine. Ever since she nearly collapsed infront of Emily and I, she’s been acting... Odd. I thought after a couple of days, things would go back to normal and she was just on some weird phase. But, I was wrong. Nel was not the same, and I was intrigued as to why. There’s obviously something she’s not telling you, dipshit. It was right, the voice in my head was indeed right. Her bones started to stick out more, it was no longer healthy. I mean, she’s always been slim but now, it was starting to scare me. And from the statement Ned, Chase and Denny gave me, I’m not the only one.

“Look, mum... No! What the fuck? I’m not... I’m not in denial. Don’t try and go there... No one does that, mum... You have no right to do that! That’s like against the law, I swear... Fine, goodbye!” Nel slammed her phone onto her bunk after hissing insults under her breath. Chase had invited me over to talk about a possible collab for their new album before their performance. Being the supportive friend I am, I agreed. It would be good for their publicity anyway.

“Chase,” I greeted, pulling him into a bro-hug, “What was that about?”

“Her mum called and that’s all we know.” He chuckled. Just as I sat down and opened the beer Chase handed to me, Nel stormed in, taking a big gulp from my beer and groaning.

“Seriously, light beer?” Before any of us could ask what her conversation was bout or even say hello, she was downing vodka right from the bottle. Eventually, she nearly choked and put it down, but not without spilling a bit due to this outburst of anger.

“Woah, Nel, calm-" Chase started, only earning a death glare from the small girl.

What was up with her today? Clearly, it had something to do with her mother, but what?
“Hey, man, could you give us a minute?” The vocalist nodded and walked past Nel and towards the back lounge. But she didn’t seem fazed by his leaving; instead she was infatuated in opening a cigarette packet. I didn’t really take it in, until it finally went from my eyes to my brain. She said she stopped.

“What the hell? No.” It wasn’t really an option for her to contemplate the situation; I had already taken it out of her hands with the lighter. I understand the drinking, but I did not want her to go back to smoking. Instead of eating, she would smoke. Instead of talking about her problems, she would smoke. Nel may not have seen it as a problem, but I definitely did when she started to resemble a skeleton.

“Where did you get these from?” No answer. She just stood there, rubbing her face with her palms as if she had just woken up.

“Nel, why are you smoking again? I thought you stopped, we all did.”

“Look, just give me the cigarette and imagine it never happened,” Letting out an unhumourous chuckle, she said. Tears were slowly trailing down her cheeks; she just swatted them away like flies. When I tried to wipe them away, Nel took a step back and shook her head.

“C’mere,” I said. Before she had a chance to wriggle away, my arms were tightly wrapped around her delicate frame, my fingers drawing random shapes on her boney back. She had finally given in, letting her emotions spill out onto my shirt. It hurt to see her this way, upset and vulnerable.

“I-I should get ready, I’ll talk to you later.”

“Nel-"

“Sorry, for ruining your shirt.”

“It’s fine,” Seeing as she clearly didn’t want to talk now, I let her go. Plus, she had to get ready for her set. Denny was right, it had to do with that day when she had some sort of attack, and it had to do with her family. But, what? Yes, she had issues with her mother, but after that one dinner, surely her mother would want nothing to do with her, us. None of it made sense to me, it was just so confusing and I didn’t have the balls to ask her. Only with the fear she would push me away, push us all away and I couldn’t risk that. If she wanted to tell me, then she could. And if she didn’t, then hat was her choice and we had to accept that.

Nel emerged from the stairs, ear plugs dangling from her chest line and sticks firmly in her palms. It was as if her outburst never happened, makeup smudges cleared, new change of clothes, a nose ring instead of stud, a messy bun instead of the wild ponytail. She had restored her beauty in a matter of minutes. But she was a beauty in my mind even if she was in tears; she always had been in my eyes. Could she ever know that? Hopefully, but then I doubt she would want the same as me. Plus, I had deal with Keira, my slightly psychotic girlfriend. In fact, she’s coming to Warped, couldn’t be happier. God knows why I’m with her, she’s nothing like Nel. What the fuck, Austin, stop comparing your girlfriend, who you love, with Nel. Course, they’re not the same, why would anyone as great as Nel be with someone like you?

“I’ll talk to you later, okay. There’s leftover pizza in the fridge, and don’t forget Godzilla will be here at 3.” When I looked down, Nel had her arms had wrapped her arms around my torso, and her head was resting on my chest. Wait, Godzilla? Keira. Good one.

---

“Thank you, Washington! Fuck, that was amazing. Don’t forget to get the new our new song Let’s Run Wild from ITunes, or you could illegally download it. It doesn’t matter, as long as you don’t tell the cops. Okay, we’re Price of Treason, and thank you.” Chuckling at Ned, I took a sip of my monster as they all ran off. Keira would probably be here in 30 minutes, and she hated Nel, so I wanted to spend as much time with her as I could.

“Hey, Aus, when’s your set?”

“Uh, 5 I think. C’mon, I wanna’ go watch a movie!” I whined. She giggled and let me drag her to my bus. Only Phil and Alan were on, which was cool. Nel left my grip and headed towards the shower, picking up a load of clothes she had left behind.

“Man, why does your girl have to come?”

“Because she thinks I’m cheating constantly, and feels left out from partying.” Alan only laughed at my relationship instead of consoling me. I didn’t blame him; I would’ve done the same.

“If Keira’s here, it means Nel can’t come here.” From the back lounge, Phil complained. He was right, nonetheless, Keira was coming and there was definitely going to be an argument if she saw Nel and I watching a movie.

“Hey, Ass-Bee,” Nel giggled, pulling Alan into a hug. He obliged and nestled his face in her hair, me secretly glaring at the back of his head.

“Aus, can I borrow one of your tees, I can’t find mine, and all that’s here is shorts and a vest.”

“Yea-"

“Borrow one of mine,” Alan intervened with a smirk, taking off his top and handing it to her. Asshole. Nel slid it on with ease, the only thing I could focus on was how it should be my shirt not his.

Distracting me from my thoughts, the bus door busted open to reveal a beaming, small, blonde with two enormous suitcases.

“Aussie, baby!”

Notes

This chapeter was... Okay. XD But, hey, Austin's POV!
THE OM&M CONCERT WAS SO FUCKING GOOD OMG I WAS CRYING AFTER HOLY SHIT. PLUS, JACK AND JUSTIN FROM SWS WERE IN FRONT OF ME FOR LIKE 2 MINUTES BUT I WAS TOO SHY TO ASK THEM FOR A PIC SO I JUST FREAKED AND THEN THEY LEFT. BUT, FUCK, THE WERE SO GOOD.
Nel's Outfit.
- Hen.