A Friday Night Like This

I hightailed out of Nandos after being yelled at by several staff members and the manager. I'd stayed there for two hours, slowly eating my food and, after I'd finished, slowly sipping the drink I had ordered while checking out different jobs. I typed out a roughly crafted resume and matched it to different criteria. It was unlikely that Gabe, Jesse, Justin and Jack would take me back, so I needed to have my options covered for when I returned home. The staff had gotten fed up, because I was taking up seats for potential customers. But it was a very slow day, only three other groups arrived while I was there. I didn't see any reason for them to worry.

I start walking towards the venue. There's a line outside a mile long, so I go around to the back. Zach and Rian are walking into the venue and I call out their names, hoping that they hear me. I slide past security without any troubles and Zach hands me a spare pass. He gives me a lop-sided smile.

'I knew you'd be here. Pay up, Ri.' He turns to his companion who, in turn, rolls his eyes and digs into his pocket. He hands a twenty over reluctantly.

'Only twenty bucks?' I say. 'I'm disappointed, Zach.' Zach shrugs, pocketing the twenty.

'I wasn't that confident.' He says. We continue walking. It's about seven forty-five.

'Gotta run, Kellin. We play in a few minutes.' Rian says, tugging on Zach's shirt. They start running to where I presume the stage is.

'Oh, and guys?' I shout at them. They stop and turn back.

'Yeah?'

'I was never here.'

They nod knowingly and continue their sprint for the stage. I laugh quietly and begin walking to one of the doors that I know is near the back of the venue. I see Vic and Jaime walking this way, and skitter to the side, crouching behind a few boxes.

'Hime, get real. It isn't going to happen.' I heard Vic say, their footsteps echoing along the abandoned hall.

'How do you know?' Jaime asked, passing right by me.

'I just have a feeling. He won't forgive me. I saw it in his eyes. Deep down, like, really deep, he doesn't. It's just the truth.' Vic sighed and opened a door, presumably going into an interview because I could hear Mike's laugh and an annoyingly familiar voice say,

'And look who it is guys! It's Vic and -'

Bryan. I rolled my eyes and darted along the hallway. I exited the becoming-claustrophobic space and joined the crowd that was filing in from the front entrance. I managed to walk all the way to the other side of the building, snapping up a spot midway from stage to doors.

I watched Alex, Jack, Rian and Zach run onstage to begin the night. They started off with "Reckless and the Brave", a much older song from their 2012 album "Don't Panic". A few songs in and they played one of their singles off the new album, entitled "Lovesick". They ended with another much older song, "A Party Scene". During the entire show, Zach's eyes had flitted around, until they had met mine, which was accompanied by a small smile afterwards.

All Time Low ran offstage and were quickly followed by Memphis May Fire. I recalled singing with them, lending my voice to them for guest vocals.

‘Matty, how do you think we should start this?’ I asked. We were sitting in Matty’s living room, thinking about lyrics for a new song. Matty already had an idea; we just needed to put it on paper. I had my lyric book with me and I was tapping a blank page. Matty had his out and was flicking through it feverishly.

‘I had, uh, an idea… It’s here somewhere… I know it is! I was looking at it this morning.’ He continued turning page after page, his eyes glancing at the scribbled mess.

‘Do you remember it? I really doubt you’re going to find it anytime soon.’ I said, my eyebrows raising at the amount of stuff he had jotted down. This guy would probably never need to think of new ideas again!

‘That’s probably a good idea…’ He mumbled, glancing up at me. ‘Would you like a coffee? It might take a while for me to remember.’ I nodded in response to his question.

‘Thanks.’ I said. I continued tapping my page. Matty walked into his bedroom while the kettle was boiling, and walked out, a triumphant smile on his face.

‘I found it!’ He said proudly, showing me the ripped page. I took it from him and started skimming. Words were crossed out by harsh lines, so it made it difficult to read. His handwriting was mostly neat.

’”God, give me the strength to do what you created me to do,"' I read. 'This is some really good stuff, Matty.' I said, accepting my hot drink.

'Thanks,' He said. 'Do you want to write some of it down? My handwriting isn't the best...'

'Sure.' I replied, quickly jotting down the lines. We started swapping ideas about verses and what to make the chorus.

‘How about we put “She looks at me and says da dada da da,” after “How am I supposed to be everything they expect me to be”.’

‘Nah, in the verse.’

‘That’ll be better… but after what?’

‘Maybe before the first chorus? After “they said it gets easier but they lied”?’

‘Where will we put the second chorus?’

‘Should we repeat it at the end?’

‘What are you going to sing, Kells?’

‘And when?’

We worked late into the night, taking breaks every now and then.

'Matty, it's one in the morning. How about we call it a day? We both know both our brains are fried.' I laughed, stifling a yawn. Matty did yawn, replying with,

‘We’ll continue in a few hours, yeah?’

‘With the band? Because if we need anything, we need the music. Otherwise this song isn’t going anywhere.’ I said.

‘Yeah. There's a spare bedroom to the left. Night, Kellin.' Matty stole my beanie and shoved it on his own head, gesturing vaguely to the bedroom. I got up and shuffled over, my eyes already drooping, a yawn escaping my mouth. I pulled my shoes, socks and shirt off and crept under the blankets. I snuggled into the warm space and the next thing I knew it was morning.

‘Morning Kellin.’ Matty said as I dragged myself down the hallway.

‘Coffee.’ I said in response. Matty chuckled and passed me a steaming mug. I took a gulp and felt much more awake.

‘What’s the time?’ I asked, sipping at my drink. Matty pointed over my shoulder before turning around to the toaster. I looked over my shoulder at the time. It was almost ten o’clock.

‘Cory, Jake, Anthony and other Kellen will be here soon. I suggest getting dressed.’ Matty finished making his toast and turned around, grabbing his own coffee. He said the last line and raised his eyebrows, his eyes trailing up and down my body, lingering on choice areas. I blushed and ran back to the bedroom, Matty’s laugh echoing after me.

I woke up from my trance and heard Matty start singing to a new song. I realised that it was the song I had done with him - Miles Away. I smiled and stood there, shocked, when I heard my recorded vocals. I hid behind my long-ish hair and tried to blend in before someone noticed me. It didn't take a genius to put two and two together. I may not be very well know these days, but a past fan may have seen me and not been able to match up all the dots.

The rest of the show continued without a hitch, me quietly singing under my breath, low enough so that no one could hear me. Finally, Pierce the Veil ran on and my stomach jumped. My breathing hitched as I lay eyes on my boyfriend. It was a shame that it was only boyfriend though. I missed him being my husband. He dedicated a song to me, saying,

'And this song goes out to my boyfriend, Kellin Bostwick. He was on this tour, but he, uh, vanished suddenly last night. I don't know where he went, I've just gotten a text saying, "I'm fine, see you soon." So...' Vic trailed off and started strumming his guitar. It was the intro to Kissing In Cars.

‘As we wake up in your room,

Your face is the first thing I see,

The first time I've seen love,

And the last I'll ever need,

You remind him that the future would be nothing without him,

Never lose him, I'm afraid,

Better think of something good to say,’ Vic sang the first verse sweetly, his voice capturing everyone’s attention. Nobody moved, nobody talked. Cameras were out, but no flashes could be seen.

‘Well it's all been done, more than once so I'll keep on trying,

Oh God don't let me be the only one who says...’ He paused, prolonging the dramatics of it. He gave a smirk and belted out the next phrase.

‘No! At the top of our lungs,

There's no, no such thing as too young,

When second chances won't leave you alone,

Then there's faith in love.

He was always the one,

I'll repeat it again, the one,

No such thing as too young,

Red lights flash in the car we're kissing in,

Call me crazy,

I've always tried to remind him that the future's,

Just a few heartbeats away from disaster,

I'm afraid, that I've thrown it all away…’ I noticed that he had sung it using male nouns. My heart swelled even more. His eyes roamed the crowd, lingering near my section too much for my liking, so I ducked behind a few people on front of me. It was sheer luck that Zach had seen me, but I didn’t want to test my luck that much tonight. Too much was already at stake.

'No! At the top of our lungs,

There's no, no such thing as too young,

When second chances won't leave you alone

No, at the top of our lungs,

There's no, no such thing as too young,

When second chances won't leave you alone,' That lyric hit hard. This was our second chance, and in a way it had been bugging us. And I was going to reach out and grab it in both hands and never let it go. I didn't want to think of the consequences if I did.

'We'll repeat it again,

There's no, no such thing as too young,

When second chances won't leave us alone,

Cause there's faith in...

If you kiss me goodnight,

I'll know, everything is alright,

When second chances won't leave us alone,

Won't leave us alone,

Cause there's faith in love.' The song came to an end, and the room exploded. Cheers, whistles, claps, you name it, they echoed around the cavernous space. Vic grinned at everyone.

'Thank you all for coming out here!' He yelled into the microphone. 'Now we've got a few more songs to play for you, so welcome Jaime, Tony and Mike back onstage, Sacramento!' Everybody yelled at him, and the others ran on.

They finally finished up with a new song, one that I wasn’t familiar with. They all ran offstage and everyone began filing out of the doors. I pulled out my phone and pressed myself against the wall as people walked past. I opened up my texts and sent a quick one to Alex.

To: Alex Gaskarth Hey Alex. Could you please send Vic a text telling him to go to the floor about ten minutes after everyone’s gone? Don’t tell him that it’s from me though.

I watched the bar fill up, coming up with “sent” as it arrived on Alex’s phone. A few more people wandered past and I got a reply straight away.

From: Alex Gaskarth Sure. Can I know why?

I thought for a moment before deciding against it. He may tell someone who would tell Vic and I couldn’t take that risk. I sent back my answer and waited for everyone to go.I had a sudden idea and ran through the backstage area, trying to find a piano. Or at least an easily transportable keyboard. I ran into Zach, who gladly helped me find one. The clock was against me though, and I had just set up when I heard footsteps coming from outside. I started playing, my fingers lovingly stroking the keys, lightly dancing to the beat of my own imagination. It was completely dark, so he couldn't see who was playing.

'Alex? I didn't know you could play keys.' Vic said. I bit the inside of my cheek and continued producing the clean sound. I changed the tune, to something I could sing to. A million different ideas raced through my mind, and I finally landed on one that I knew would be the right option. Vic stopped in his tracks as I sang the first line.

'And I'd give up forever to touch you,' I started, my voice low. I continued singing in a lower key, looking at the different notes and moving my long fingers to them.

'Cause I know that you feel me somehow,

You're the closest to heaven

That I'll ever be and I don't want to go home right now.' I heard Vic breathe my name, and move forward a few steps. I continued singing though, my voice filling the seemingly empty space. It soared higher as I sang the chorus.

'And all I can taste is this moment,

And all I can breathe is your life,

But sooner or later it's over,

I just don't want to miss you tonight.

And I don't as the world to see me,

Cause I don't think that they'd understand,

When everything's meant to be broken,

I just want you to know who I am.' My voice dipped down lower again, and I smiled as I sang.

'And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming

Or the moment of truth in your lies.

When everything feels like the movies,

Yeah, you bleed just to know you're alive,' my voice rose again and I could hear Vic walking forward.

'And I don't want the world to see me

'Cause I don't think that they'd understand

When everything's meant to be broken

I just want you to know who I am

And I don't want the world to see me

'Cause I don't think that they'd understand

When everything's meant to be broken

I just want you to know who I am

And I don't want the world to see me

'Cause I don't think that they'd understand

When everything's meant to be broken

I just want you to know who I am

I just want you to know who I am

I just want you to kn-' I was cut off quite rudely and abruptly by Vic, his lips claiming my own. I stood up and he relinquished his claim over them. I wrapped my arms around his body.

'Thank you.' He said.

'For what?'

'You did it. You just did it. I know that you forgive me, that's what you sung on our wedding day.' He said simply. 'I love you so much, Kellin. I'm sorry I ever cheated. Jaime... Was a complication. But he's moved on and found his own girl.'

'I love you too Vic. And I do forgive you.' We broke the hug and linked hands.

'When's your last show?' I asked as we walked out of the building. We got two steps before being surrounded by the All Time Low guys. Alex and Jack were throwing confetti everywhere, Zach was snapping away like crazy and Rian was standing next to the scene laughing and shaking his head. Alex and Jack stopped about a minute later and grinned at us. Zach lined up a few shots and smiled at us over his camera.

'I'm sorry about these guys.' Rian said 'Alex couldn't keep his trap shut and yeah...'

'It's fine,' I said. 'They reminded me of something.' We said our goodbyes and we left the scene with Rian telling Alex and Jack to clean up the confetti.

I walked Vic up to his bus door and passed him an envelope. Inside were the photos that Zach had taken. He pulled them out and looked through them. The smile that graced his features was one of the widest and brightest I had ever seen.

‘How?’ He asked when he was done looking through them. He flicked back through them, to one that was obviously his favourite.

‘Zach took them. I saw him. He was trying to be discreet about it, but there you go. I caught up to him at the last stop and I printed out some of the shots.’ I said.

‘Thank you.’ He said, engulfing me in a hug.

‘And Zach.’ I reminded him gently. He laughed.

‘And Zach.’

‘I love you so much, Vic.’

‘I love you too, Kellin.’

Notes

Yay! All happy with smiles, sunshine, rainbows and unicorns. c:

Title cred: Seen It All Before - Bring Me The Horizon