This Love Was Out of Control
THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHEEERE
*Vic’s POV*
“Come on guys! Lets fucking practice! Auditions are next week and we can’t afford to lose any time!” Auditions were getting closer and closer by the second. I was so excited because I have confidence that the song we’re going to perform will make the judges jump out of their seats. I’m just worried about Sleeping with Sirens and what they’re going to pull out of their asses in a week. I haven’t heard anything from them yet. I just worry that they will have something fresher than us. Something that no one has come up with. I wonder if these judges will judge us strictly. Do facials count? I gotta smile right? Performance will count as well, obviously. But it’s the audience that matters too.
“I think we mastered this song a little too well,” Mike said, playing the last drum beat.
“You’re right. Caraphernelia is gonna be a hit one day I can feel it,” Jaime joined, pulling the strap from the guitar off him and placing it on the couch gently.
Caraphernelia. That’s the song we’re gonna play for the judges. They didn’t seem to like Yeah Boy and Doll Face with Yesterday’s Mistakes, but when Pierce the Veil plays it, it blows me away. I hope the judges see us differently this time. I don’t want them to get the same idea that “oh great, they’re back…” kind of thing when they see us. Besides, we have a better bassist that can scream and a guitarist that shreds the shit out of anything.
Many changes will be made with the way we’re gonna live if we pass the auditions. Only five bands get the opportunity to shine past the auditions, not to mention that they are 20 bands starting out for the audition and five get chosen. Sadly, we weren’t one of them and sent us packing already when we received the letter in the mail. It broke my heart that I couldn’t get Yesterday’s Mistakes higher than a band audition. It proves that we weren’t good enough at the time. Being as we grow older (we barely grew, just meaning like members) as a band, we practiced the hell out of this song to make it perfect.
~~~
*1 week later*
I got the letter in the mail saying that we were chosen to be part of the Battle of the Bands auditions. I alerted Jaime back at home and told him to come over with Tony. They reached our house in no time and brought their equipment.
“Ok, we were chosen and we’re going to make the judges proud. Me and Mike have done this before so let me tell you what you’re in for. There are three judges that sit in front of you while you’re on stage. They have an audience in the background that want to hear some badass music and we’re gonna give it to them. They‘ll give us a warning when we have five minutes till we‘re on and then we hit the stage.”
“How do we know if we passed the auditions and made it to the final five?” Tony questioned, scratching his arm.
“You get a letter in the mail. I mean, I will because I put my address on it already so I promise I will call you asap when we get it,” I explained.
“Do you know what bands they picked or do you just find out there when we go backstage to warm up?” Jaime asked.
“We find out everything we need to know there. This letter is just telling us that we got accepted to audition for Battle of the Bands. We get to perform Caraphernelia in front of a huge audience and we don’t want to disappoint anyone.”
“So what happens if we get chosen for the final five? Like what do we do?” Tony urged. I feel like he's more worried than I am. I know he's only asking all this because he has a job he goes to everyday and if we get chosen, we have to put a lot of time into practicing. He won't be able to make it to his job everyday because we gotta be the best of the best.
“If we get chosen, they will give us all the information we need to know about what we gotta do. But it’s gonna take practice, practice, and more practice. By the way, when we get there, they should have a sign telling us what number we are to perform. So be ready for anything.”
~~~
We brought our equpiment into the bulding. We approached a sign that read Battle of the Bands: Band auditions to your right and audience members to your left. We strolled to the right and saw everyone practicing backstage. To my surprise, I saw Austin talking with a crew member that sets up the equipment on stage.
“Hey, Austin!” I screeched, chucking my bag on the ground and walking up to him.
He patted the man on his back and skipped over to me. “Vic, my man! How’s it going?” he smiled widely.
“Great! A little nervous, but I didn’t know you were gonna be here!”
“I didn’t either. Tino signed us up because he thought we were ready for anything. I mean we are but he didn’t ask us; he just went ahead and did it himself. So now we’re kinda stuck doing this audition. I wouldn’t be surprised if we didn’t make it.”
“What song will you guys be performing?”
“Probably Still YDG’N or Second and Sebring. I didn’t confirm it yet but I’ll ask right before we go on. It doesn’t make a difference which one because I like both. I’ll probably put all my anger into Still YDG’N because of that bitch I dated. To think, I was gonna marry her too. Pretty sure Second and Sebring will be the choice of song we pick.”
“Because of your mama?” I asked, hoping he wouldn’t get emotional. Austin always loved his mom; she died when he was only 17. That's very heartbreaking to know he grew up without a mom. I'd probably cry if I didn't have a mom to take care of me as a growing teenager. But he was old enough to take care of himself so I'm pretty sure he did fine on his own. I swear fathers are never there for their damn children. Kellin was abused by his dad and had to move out of his place with his mom, Jamie's dad abandoned him at god knows what age, and Austin's dad let him do whatever the hell he wanted, which caused him to smoke and party all the time.
“Yeah,” he sighed. “Because of my mom. She deserves to be here. Stupid Marfan Syndrom got her. You know I heard anyone can get it at any age, but it mainly runs in the family.”
“I figured.” I never thought to put all my anger out on a song. Maybe I will when we perform Caraphernelia. I hate Cara, but she was my first real love. No one ever treated me as good as she did. She didn’t use me for sex nor did she use me to make herself look good because I’m popular. But fuck her, she cheated and I have Jaime, and I only need him to make me happy.
“Vic, come on! We gotta practice in the other room real quick!” Jaime screamed from the other side of the stage.
“Alright, coming! Give me a minute,” I shouted back to him and turning my attention to Austin again.
“I’m proud of you, Vic,” Austin said, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder.
“For what?” I inquired.
“For showing your love for Jaime in front of the team at practice last week. That took guts.” I gave him a puzzled look. “Caesar told me. You didn’t prove to us in the class that you were gay but you showed your true colors on the team. That would‘ve been so difficult for some people to do if front of the coach and random people watching you at practice. I‘m very proud.”
“Thanks, man,” I said, embracing him in a strained hug.
“Now, Vic!” Mike yelled for me to come and practice.
“I gotta go, Austin. So good luck passing the auditions. Tell me if you do.” I ran past a sheet on the wall backstage that said all the bands in order they were to play in. We were towards the end, number 16 to be precise. I took note of certain bands; Of Mice and Men were going eighth and All Time Low were going first. Dude, that fucking sucks! All Time Low had to go first?! Hmmm, who's Tonight Alive? They sound cool; they were going second. I noticed that Sleeping with Sirens were number 15; they were right before us. Speaking of them, where were they?
“ALL TIME LOW,” some lady said, poking her head through the curtain. They were actually standing right at the curtain but she still felt the need to yell because it was loud backstage, and the audience doesn‘t help because they‘re pumped as fuck. “YOU HAVE FIVE MINTUES TILL THE OPENING SO BE READY WHEN THAT MAN OVER THERE INTRODUCES YOU ALL.” She pointed to a very sturdy-looking guy. He was about six foot five with dirty blonde hair. “SO FIVE MINTUES AND EXPECT TO BE CALLED ON STAGE!”
My heart was racing and we weren’t even close to going yet. I went to the other room and started practicing with the other members of Pierce the Veil.
~~~
"TONIGHT ALIVE! FIVE MINUTES TILL YOUR OPENING! BE READY!"
I saw Jenna walking over to the stage to go on with some other guys I didn't know. Wait...Jenna?! "Hey, Jenna!"
"Vic!"
"What are you doing here? I didn't know you were in a band!"
"Yeah. My band is Tonight Alive! I'm the singer. I thought you knew that."
"Now I do," I smiled. "Go put on a show, girl! Work it!"
~~~
I heard the lady call out from the room I was in. “OF MICE AND MEN. FIVE MINUTES! BE READY TO BE CALLED ON STAGE!”
We’re at number eight already?! What the fuck? We just started! How short are their damn songs that they're playing?
I ran out to the band before they went on stage. They had four and a half minutes left so I guess stopping them for a minute won't hurt them.
“Good luck guys! Make them proud!” I said, giving them all a hug.
“Wait, guys! What are we playing?” Austin said before he disappeared in front of the curtain.
“Second and Sebring!” Alan yelled. “Now come you fucks! Lets go put on a show!”
I waved good-bye and watched them go out on stage. I heard Austin scream, “WHAT’S UP, AUDIENCE?!” This was all too much excitement for me just listening to him talk. “This song we’re going to perform for you guys is called Second and Sebring. It’s dedicated to my mother, and sadly, she is no longer with us. Please enjoy it!”
I heard a couple “aww’s” from the audience and that broke my heart. He's so strong.
I heard the door backstage crash open. I turned on my heals and finally saw Kellin and the rest of Sleeping with Sirens pop in. They threw their bags on the ground and handed their electronics to the girl by the door.
“Dude, where were you?! The auditions are already at number eight!” I directed towards Kellin.
“What number are we? Please tell me we’re not going next!” Kellin screamed nervously, shaking me with fear in his eyes.
“Chill, Kels! You’re not next. You’re right before us. You’re number 15 and we’re only at eight. You have some time to practice. They will give you a five minute warning when you’re about to go next. Go get ready.”
He ran past me and told the rest of his band the news.
"We're Of Mice and Men! Thank you!"
~~~
“SLEEPING WITH SIRENS! FIVE MINUTES TILL YOUR OPENING! BE READY TO BE CALLED ON STAGE!” the lady yelled once more.
“Hold on guys. I’ll be right back!” I jogged up to Kellin and wished him good luck. He had so much panic on his face and he was pacing back and forth. “Um, Kels, you ok?” I asked him.
“No, I’m not ok. I’m scared out of my mind!” He continued pacing up and down isle until I finally gave him some motivation.
“Don’t be scared, Kels. You’ll be alright. Just show the audience that they need your kind of music to keep going in life. I’ve never heard it before but I’m about to! I know you’ll do great.”
A man on stage started introducing the next band. “Please welcome the mighty Sleeping with Sirens!” The audience cheered like crazy. Kellin poked his head out of the curtain and was about to freak out. He jumped and hid his face.
“Oh my god, I can’t fucking do it,” he said trying to run away. He was not getting out of doing this. I thought he wanted to start his own band and become famous. He's making it very difficult for himself.
I grabbed his arm firmly and made him face me. “Listen to me, ya little shit! You get your ass out there and you sing the hell out of the song you’re going to sing! You hear me? Don‘t let the rest of your band down.”
“I’m scared, Vic. Come with me.” His body was shaking.
“I can’t come with you. But I promise I’ll cheer you on and watch you from backstage. Now get outta here and go put on a show!”
He poked his head out of the curtain again as well as I did. I saw Jack, Gabe, Justin, and Jesse putting on their guitars and getting ready to beat the first drum beat. Kellin had to go out there and grab the mic but he wasn't budging.
I noticed a familiar face in the audience. I remember her somewhere. And then it hit me. “Look, Kels! Katelynne is in the audience! Don’t let her down; she came all this way again just to see you perform. She’s here for you and so am I. Now get!” I pushed him from behind the curtain. He had no other option but to go on stage now.
He ran on stage with a small on his face. He took off the microphone from the stand and began speaking. “Hey, guys! We’re Sleeping with Sirens and we’re gonna sing you If I’m James Dean, You’re Audrey Hepburn! Hope you like it!”
The audience hushed immediately for them to begin. I watched as Kellin turned around to make sure I was observant. I smiled at him and he smiled back. He faced the audience and waved at Katelynne. She saw his action and quickly waved back before he sang the first line.
♪ Stay for tonight
If you want to
I can show you
What my dreams are made of,
as I'm dreaming of your face
I've been away for a long time
Such a long time
And I miss you there
I can't imagine being anywhere else
I can't imagine being anywhere else but here ♪
His voice was an angel. I never knew he could sing like that. I was wrong for not letting him put his ideas into Yesterday’s Mistakes. I thought they would suck. But I've been wrong before.
♪ How the hell did you ever pick me?
Honestly, I could sing you a song
But I don't think words can express your beauty
It's singing to me
How the hell did we end up like this?
You bring out the beast in me
I fell in love from the moment we kissed
Since then we've been history
They say that love is forever
Your forever is all that I need
Please stay as long as you need
Can't promise that things won't be broken
But I swear that I will never leave
Please stay forever with me ♪
~~~
“We’re Sleeping with Sirens! Thanks so much guys! Vote for us!” Kellin bellowed into the microphone before heading backstage with the rest of his band. I saw him wiping off his sweat with a towel when I walked up to him with my jaw descended below my neck. Ok, not literally but you know what I mean.
“I’m. Speechless. What the hell, Kellin? Why didn’t you tell me you had a seraphic voice that anyone could die for?”
“You never gave me the chance. I’m not a screamer in the band, that’s Jesse. He does those parts.”
“Jesse screams? I never thought he could. Jaime does that in our band for us. You’ll hear him when we perform Caraphernelia.”
“Caraphernelia? I never heard that one before. Did Pierce the Veil just come up with it? What about Yeah Boy and Doll Face; you didn’t wanna give it another try?”
“We thought of something different and we didn‘t wanna perform a song Yesterday‘s Mistakes failed on. We got shit you’ve never heard of yet,” I winked.
“But I’m the only one who knows about that other song you have in the back of your notebook,” he confessed.
I blushed. “Yeah, but I’ll bring it out one day, no worries.”
“PIERCE THE VEIL! FIVE MINUTES TILL YOUR OPENING! EXPECT TO BE CALLED ON STAGE!”
“I gotta go warm up again, Kels. Good job by the way! Tell me if you make it past the auditions and I’ll tell you if we pass the auditions!” Before I ran my way past him, he grabbed my arm and pulled me back. He gripped my waist and pulled me in for a hug.
“Good luck, Vic. Wow the judges and the audience!”
He shook my hand and smiled. I ran up to Mike and told him we’re on in five minutes.
“Ok guys, this is it. No backing out now! Ready for our ritual we just learned yesterday?”
They all shook their heads. Kellin was vigilant from the side and looked like he was interested in watching.
“Hey, Kellin! Wanna join us in our ritual?” I asked him. He clapped his hands and ran over to us. “You’ll pick it up. Just see how we’re doing it; you’ll be last to go.”
They know I start off with the clapping but they say my name first and all so here we go.
“And 1, 2, 3, 4...HEY VIC!”
“UH HUH?”
“THE DEVIL.”
“HERE WE GO.”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHEEERE.”
“HEY TONY!”
“WHAT?”
“THE DEVIL.”
“HUH?”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHEEERE.”
“HEY MIKE!”
“OOO!”
“THE DEVIL.”
“OH YEAH AHH.”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHEEERE.”
“HEY JAIME!”
“WHAT?”
“THE DEVIL.”
“I’LL GET ‘EM!”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHERE.”
“HEY KELLIN!”
“YERP!”
“THE DEVIL.”
“AHAAA.”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHEEERE…P.T.V! WOOOOO!”
I was not expecting Kellin to go “YERP!” after what he just heard. I blame Mike. It was his fault for making some weird ass sound but who could blame him? We want the devil away from us when we perform.
“WELCOME PIERCE THE VEIL ON STAGE EVERYONE!” the man said, leaving to come behind the curtain.
This is it. No turning back. Time for the judges to eat their words and flip a shit when they hear the new and improved… Pierce the Veil.
We ran on stage. I was so stoked to be here again and the audience was pumped as shit!
“WHAT’S UP, EVERYBODY?!” We heard screams and yells, girls trying to run past the judges section but the guards pulled them back. To think, this was just the auditions and we already have people freaking out about us! I mean that’s great! It’s a good thing!
Jaime was already jumping from overjoyment and we didn’t even start yet. For some strange reason, he held his heart like he was in pain. I wanted to check on him before we start but he seemed to shake it off from the jitters he was getting.
“Ok guys! Calm down! Calm down!” Jaime and I couldn’t control our laughing because the screams wouldn’t even stop. Jaime came up behind me and whispered something in my ear. We all stood there until they finally decided they wanted to hear some music. “Alright everybody. We're Pierce the Veil! That's my brother back there on drums, his name is Mike. We got my boyfriend on bass to the right of me, his name is Jaime. And his best friend, Tony, on guitar to my left. This song is called Caraphernelia and we hope you like it. So here we go!” I nodded at Mike and he struck the first beat with his cymbals, which signaled Jaime and Tony to shred their guitars.
♪ Sunshine, there ain't a thing that you can do that's gonna ruin my night.
(But, there's just something about)
This dizzy dreamer and her bleeding little blue boy.
Licking your fingers like you're done and,
You've decided there is so much more than me.
And baby, honestly it's harder breathing next to you, I shake.
I brought a gun and as the preacher tried to stop me.
Hold my heart it's beating for you anyway.
What if I can't forget you?
I'll burn your name into my throat.
I'll be the fire that'll catch you.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
None of the colors ever light up anymore in this hole.
Nobody prays for the heartless.
Nobody gives another penny for the selfish.
You're learning how to taste what you kill now.
Don't mind me, I'm just reaching for your necklace.
Talking to my mom about this little girl from Texas.
What if I can't forget you?
I'll burn your name into my throat.
I'll be the fire that'll catch you.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
None of the colors ever light up anymore in this hole.
Just give her back to me.
You know I can't afford the medicine that feeds what I need.
So, baby, what if I can't forget you?
(What if I can't forget you?)
Collide invisible lips like a shadow on the wall,
And just throw, oh no.
You can't just throw me away.
So, what if I can't forget you?
I'll burn your name into my throat.
I'll be the fire that'll catch you.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
What if I don't even want to?
Oh, oh. Oh, oh. Oh. Oh, oh. Oh, oh, oh. Oh, oh. Oh, oh. Oh.
What if I can't forget you?
I'll burn your name into my throat.
I'll be the fire that'll catch you.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
None of the colors ever light up anymore in this hole.
Just give her back to me.
You know I can't afford the medicine that feeds what I need.
So, baby, what if I can't forget you?
(What if I can't forget you?)
I'd better learn to live alone.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
What's so good about? What's so good about?
What's so good about picking up the pieces? ♪
We ended the song and people were silent. Dead silent; the audience and the judges. Five seconds later, we heard the first clap from a boy in the audience who wore a black beanie with an Asking Alexandria shirt; he stood to his feet. Three girls followed his actions and then more and more. They screamed and cheered for us. One of the judges even stood up and cheered us on.
“THANK YOU EVERYONE! VOTE FOR US! WE’RE PIERCE THE VEIL!” I wailed for the last time.
We ran off stage and went to the back. We got more yells and chants from everyone. We even had a girl come backstage and ask for our autographs. We were just so thrilled to see the reaction from the audience. It was unbelievable!
“Damn guys! You really did pull something out of your asses!” Jesse laughed, directing his statement towards Mike, only because Mike had to tell everyone at Kellin's club how badass we were.
“I’m impressed,” Kellin said with a straight face.
“It’s nothing swell at the moment. I know there are better songs to come,” I said with confidence.
~~~
We all went home and desparately had to wait until tomorrow for it to come in. I wanted to hang out with Jaime today but he’s working at Costco right now and then he has another part time job working with Caesar at a massage parlor.
Maybe I should go pay him a visit? No literally, I want fucking massage because that sounds so good right now. My back is killing me. If he can work his fingers on the bass, he better be able to work his fingers all over me. Full body massage or just my back? Nah...everything.
“Come on guys! Lets fucking practice! Auditions are next week and we can’t afford to lose any time!” Auditions were getting closer and closer by the second. I was so excited because I have confidence that the song we’re going to perform will make the judges jump out of their seats. I’m just worried about Sleeping with Sirens and what they’re going to pull out of their asses in a week. I haven’t heard anything from them yet. I just worry that they will have something fresher than us. Something that no one has come up with. I wonder if these judges will judge us strictly. Do facials count? I gotta smile right? Performance will count as well, obviously. But it’s the audience that matters too.
“I think we mastered this song a little too well,” Mike said, playing the last drum beat.
“You’re right. Caraphernelia is gonna be a hit one day I can feel it,” Jaime joined, pulling the strap from the guitar off him and placing it on the couch gently.
Caraphernelia. That’s the song we’re gonna play for the judges. They didn’t seem to like Yeah Boy and Doll Face with Yesterday’s Mistakes, but when Pierce the Veil plays it, it blows me away. I hope the judges see us differently this time. I don’t want them to get the same idea that “oh great, they’re back…” kind of thing when they see us. Besides, we have a better bassist that can scream and a guitarist that shreds the shit out of anything.
Many changes will be made with the way we’re gonna live if we pass the auditions. Only five bands get the opportunity to shine past the auditions, not to mention that they are 20 bands starting out for the audition and five get chosen. Sadly, we weren’t one of them and sent us packing already when we received the letter in the mail. It broke my heart that I couldn’t get Yesterday’s Mistakes higher than a band audition. It proves that we weren’t good enough at the time. Being as we grow older (we barely grew, just meaning like members) as a band, we practiced the hell out of this song to make it perfect.
~~~
*1 week later*
I got the letter in the mail saying that we were chosen to be part of the Battle of the Bands auditions. I alerted Jaime back at home and told him to come over with Tony. They reached our house in no time and brought their equipment.
“Ok, we were chosen and we’re going to make the judges proud. Me and Mike have done this before so let me tell you what you’re in for. There are three judges that sit in front of you while you’re on stage. They have an audience in the background that want to hear some badass music and we’re gonna give it to them. They‘ll give us a warning when we have five minutes till we‘re on and then we hit the stage.”
“How do we know if we passed the auditions and made it to the final five?” Tony questioned, scratching his arm.
“You get a letter in the mail. I mean, I will because I put my address on it already so I promise I will call you asap when we get it,” I explained.
“Do you know what bands they picked or do you just find out there when we go backstage to warm up?” Jaime asked.
“We find out everything we need to know there. This letter is just telling us that we got accepted to audition for Battle of the Bands. We get to perform Caraphernelia in front of a huge audience and we don’t want to disappoint anyone.”
“So what happens if we get chosen for the final five? Like what do we do?” Tony urged. I feel like he's more worried than I am. I know he's only asking all this because he has a job he goes to everyday and if we get chosen, we have to put a lot of time into practicing. He won't be able to make it to his job everyday because we gotta be the best of the best.
“If we get chosen, they will give us all the information we need to know about what we gotta do. But it’s gonna take practice, practice, and more practice. By the way, when we get there, they should have a sign telling us what number we are to perform. So be ready for anything.”
~~~
We brought our equpiment into the bulding. We approached a sign that read Battle of the Bands: Band auditions to your right and audience members to your left. We strolled to the right and saw everyone practicing backstage. To my surprise, I saw Austin talking with a crew member that sets up the equipment on stage.
“Hey, Austin!” I screeched, chucking my bag on the ground and walking up to him.
He patted the man on his back and skipped over to me. “Vic, my man! How’s it going?” he smiled widely.
“Great! A little nervous, but I didn’t know you were gonna be here!”
“I didn’t either. Tino signed us up because he thought we were ready for anything. I mean we are but he didn’t ask us; he just went ahead and did it himself. So now we’re kinda stuck doing this audition. I wouldn’t be surprised if we didn’t make it.”
“What song will you guys be performing?”
“Probably Still YDG’N or Second and Sebring. I didn’t confirm it yet but I’ll ask right before we go on. It doesn’t make a difference which one because I like both. I’ll probably put all my anger into Still YDG’N because of that bitch I dated. To think, I was gonna marry her too. Pretty sure Second and Sebring will be the choice of song we pick.”
“Because of your mama?” I asked, hoping he wouldn’t get emotional. Austin always loved his mom; she died when he was only 17. That's very heartbreaking to know he grew up without a mom. I'd probably cry if I didn't have a mom to take care of me as a growing teenager. But he was old enough to take care of himself so I'm pretty sure he did fine on his own. I swear fathers are never there for their damn children. Kellin was abused by his dad and had to move out of his place with his mom, Jamie's dad abandoned him at god knows what age, and Austin's dad let him do whatever the hell he wanted, which caused him to smoke and party all the time.
“Yeah,” he sighed. “Because of my mom. She deserves to be here. Stupid Marfan Syndrom got her. You know I heard anyone can get it at any age, but it mainly runs in the family.”
“I figured.” I never thought to put all my anger out on a song. Maybe I will when we perform Caraphernelia. I hate Cara, but she was my first real love. No one ever treated me as good as she did. She didn’t use me for sex nor did she use me to make herself look good because I’m popular. But fuck her, she cheated and I have Jaime, and I only need him to make me happy.
“Vic, come on! We gotta practice in the other room real quick!” Jaime screamed from the other side of the stage.
“Alright, coming! Give me a minute,” I shouted back to him and turning my attention to Austin again.
“I’m proud of you, Vic,” Austin said, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder.
“For what?” I inquired.
“For showing your love for Jaime in front of the team at practice last week. That took guts.” I gave him a puzzled look. “Caesar told me. You didn’t prove to us in the class that you were gay but you showed your true colors on the team. That would‘ve been so difficult for some people to do if front of the coach and random people watching you at practice. I‘m very proud.”
“Thanks, man,” I said, embracing him in a strained hug.
“Now, Vic!” Mike yelled for me to come and practice.
“I gotta go, Austin. So good luck passing the auditions. Tell me if you do.” I ran past a sheet on the wall backstage that said all the bands in order they were to play in. We were towards the end, number 16 to be precise. I took note of certain bands; Of Mice and Men were going eighth and All Time Low were going first. Dude, that fucking sucks! All Time Low had to go first?! Hmmm, who's Tonight Alive? They sound cool; they were going second. I noticed that Sleeping with Sirens were number 15; they were right before us. Speaking of them, where were they?
“ALL TIME LOW,” some lady said, poking her head through the curtain. They were actually standing right at the curtain but she still felt the need to yell because it was loud backstage, and the audience doesn‘t help because they‘re pumped as fuck. “YOU HAVE FIVE MINTUES TILL THE OPENING SO BE READY WHEN THAT MAN OVER THERE INTRODUCES YOU ALL.” She pointed to a very sturdy-looking guy. He was about six foot five with dirty blonde hair. “SO FIVE MINTUES AND EXPECT TO BE CALLED ON STAGE!”
My heart was racing and we weren’t even close to going yet. I went to the other room and started practicing with the other members of Pierce the Veil.
~~~
"TONIGHT ALIVE! FIVE MINUTES TILL YOUR OPENING! BE READY!"
I saw Jenna walking over to the stage to go on with some other guys I didn't know. Wait...Jenna?! "Hey, Jenna!"
"Vic!"
"What are you doing here? I didn't know you were in a band!"
"Yeah. My band is Tonight Alive! I'm the singer. I thought you knew that."
"Now I do," I smiled. "Go put on a show, girl! Work it!"
~~~
I heard the lady call out from the room I was in. “OF MICE AND MEN. FIVE MINUTES! BE READY TO BE CALLED ON STAGE!”
We’re at number eight already?! What the fuck? We just started! How short are their damn songs that they're playing?
I ran out to the band before they went on stage. They had four and a half minutes left so I guess stopping them for a minute won't hurt them.
“Good luck guys! Make them proud!” I said, giving them all a hug.
“Wait, guys! What are we playing?” Austin said before he disappeared in front of the curtain.
“Second and Sebring!” Alan yelled. “Now come you fucks! Lets go put on a show!”
I waved good-bye and watched them go out on stage. I heard Austin scream, “WHAT’S UP, AUDIENCE?!” This was all too much excitement for me just listening to him talk. “This song we’re going to perform for you guys is called Second and Sebring. It’s dedicated to my mother, and sadly, she is no longer with us. Please enjoy it!”
I heard a couple “aww’s” from the audience and that broke my heart. He's so strong.
I heard the door backstage crash open. I turned on my heals and finally saw Kellin and the rest of Sleeping with Sirens pop in. They threw their bags on the ground and handed their electronics to the girl by the door.
“Dude, where were you?! The auditions are already at number eight!” I directed towards Kellin.
“What number are we? Please tell me we’re not going next!” Kellin screamed nervously, shaking me with fear in his eyes.
“Chill, Kels! You’re not next. You’re right before us. You’re number 15 and we’re only at eight. You have some time to practice. They will give you a five minute warning when you’re about to go next. Go get ready.”
He ran past me and told the rest of his band the news.
"We're Of Mice and Men! Thank you!"
~~~
“SLEEPING WITH SIRENS! FIVE MINUTES TILL YOUR OPENING! BE READY TO BE CALLED ON STAGE!” the lady yelled once more.
“Hold on guys. I’ll be right back!” I jogged up to Kellin and wished him good luck. He had so much panic on his face and he was pacing back and forth. “Um, Kels, you ok?” I asked him.
“No, I’m not ok. I’m scared out of my mind!” He continued pacing up and down isle until I finally gave him some motivation.
“Don’t be scared, Kels. You’ll be alright. Just show the audience that they need your kind of music to keep going in life. I’ve never heard it before but I’m about to! I know you’ll do great.”
A man on stage started introducing the next band. “Please welcome the mighty Sleeping with Sirens!” The audience cheered like crazy. Kellin poked his head out of the curtain and was about to freak out. He jumped and hid his face.
“Oh my god, I can’t fucking do it,” he said trying to run away. He was not getting out of doing this. I thought he wanted to start his own band and become famous. He's making it very difficult for himself.
I grabbed his arm firmly and made him face me. “Listen to me, ya little shit! You get your ass out there and you sing the hell out of the song you’re going to sing! You hear me? Don‘t let the rest of your band down.”
“I’m scared, Vic. Come with me.” His body was shaking.
“I can’t come with you. But I promise I’ll cheer you on and watch you from backstage. Now get outta here and go put on a show!”
He poked his head out of the curtain again as well as I did. I saw Jack, Gabe, Justin, and Jesse putting on their guitars and getting ready to beat the first drum beat. Kellin had to go out there and grab the mic but he wasn't budging.
I noticed a familiar face in the audience. I remember her somewhere. And then it hit me. “Look, Kels! Katelynne is in the audience! Don’t let her down; she came all this way again just to see you perform. She’s here for you and so am I. Now get!” I pushed him from behind the curtain. He had no other option but to go on stage now.
He ran on stage with a small on his face. He took off the microphone from the stand and began speaking. “Hey, guys! We’re Sleeping with Sirens and we’re gonna sing you If I’m James Dean, You’re Audrey Hepburn! Hope you like it!”
The audience hushed immediately for them to begin. I watched as Kellin turned around to make sure I was observant. I smiled at him and he smiled back. He faced the audience and waved at Katelynne. She saw his action and quickly waved back before he sang the first line.
♪ Stay for tonight
If you want to
I can show you
What my dreams are made of,
as I'm dreaming of your face
I've been away for a long time
Such a long time
And I miss you there
I can't imagine being anywhere else
I can't imagine being anywhere else but here ♪
His voice was an angel. I never knew he could sing like that. I was wrong for not letting him put his ideas into Yesterday’s Mistakes. I thought they would suck. But I've been wrong before.
♪ How the hell did you ever pick me?
Honestly, I could sing you a song
But I don't think words can express your beauty
It's singing to me
How the hell did we end up like this?
You bring out the beast in me
I fell in love from the moment we kissed
Since then we've been history
They say that love is forever
Your forever is all that I need
Please stay as long as you need
Can't promise that things won't be broken
But I swear that I will never leave
Please stay forever with me ♪
~~~
“We’re Sleeping with Sirens! Thanks so much guys! Vote for us!” Kellin bellowed into the microphone before heading backstage with the rest of his band. I saw him wiping off his sweat with a towel when I walked up to him with my jaw descended below my neck. Ok, not literally but you know what I mean.
“I’m. Speechless. What the hell, Kellin? Why didn’t you tell me you had a seraphic voice that anyone could die for?”
“You never gave me the chance. I’m not a screamer in the band, that’s Jesse. He does those parts.”
“Jesse screams? I never thought he could. Jaime does that in our band for us. You’ll hear him when we perform Caraphernelia.”
“Caraphernelia? I never heard that one before. Did Pierce the Veil just come up with it? What about Yeah Boy and Doll Face; you didn’t wanna give it another try?”
“We thought of something different and we didn‘t wanna perform a song Yesterday‘s Mistakes failed on. We got shit you’ve never heard of yet,” I winked.
“But I’m the only one who knows about that other song you have in the back of your notebook,” he confessed.
I blushed. “Yeah, but I’ll bring it out one day, no worries.”
“PIERCE THE VEIL! FIVE MINUTES TILL YOUR OPENING! EXPECT TO BE CALLED ON STAGE!”
“I gotta go warm up again, Kels. Good job by the way! Tell me if you make it past the auditions and I’ll tell you if we pass the auditions!” Before I ran my way past him, he grabbed my arm and pulled me back. He gripped my waist and pulled me in for a hug.
“Good luck, Vic. Wow the judges and the audience!”
He shook my hand and smiled. I ran up to Mike and told him we’re on in five minutes.
“Ok guys, this is it. No backing out now! Ready for our ritual we just learned yesterday?”
They all shook their heads. Kellin was vigilant from the side and looked like he was interested in watching.
“Hey, Kellin! Wanna join us in our ritual?” I asked him. He clapped his hands and ran over to us. “You’ll pick it up. Just see how we’re doing it; you’ll be last to go.”
They know I start off with the clapping but they say my name first and all so here we go.
“And 1, 2, 3, 4...HEY VIC!”
“UH HUH?”
“THE DEVIL.”
“HERE WE GO.”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHEEERE.”
“HEY TONY!”
“WHAT?”
“THE DEVIL.”
“HUH?”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHEEERE.”
“HEY MIKE!”
“OOO!”
“THE DEVIL.”
“OH YEAH AHH.”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHEEERE.”
“HEY JAIME!”
“WHAT?”
“THE DEVIL.”
“I’LL GET ‘EM!”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHERE.”
“HEY KELLIN!”
“YERP!”
“THE DEVIL.”
“AHAAA.”
“THE DEVIL IS EVERYWHEEERE…P.T.V! WOOOOO!”
I was not expecting Kellin to go “YERP!” after what he just heard. I blame Mike. It was his fault for making some weird ass sound but who could blame him? We want the devil away from us when we perform.
“WELCOME PIERCE THE VEIL ON STAGE EVERYONE!” the man said, leaving to come behind the curtain.
This is it. No turning back. Time for the judges to eat their words and flip a shit when they hear the new and improved… Pierce the Veil.
We ran on stage. I was so stoked to be here again and the audience was pumped as shit!
“WHAT’S UP, EVERYBODY?!” We heard screams and yells, girls trying to run past the judges section but the guards pulled them back. To think, this was just the auditions and we already have people freaking out about us! I mean that’s great! It’s a good thing!
Jaime was already jumping from overjoyment and we didn’t even start yet. For some strange reason, he held his heart like he was in pain. I wanted to check on him before we start but he seemed to shake it off from the jitters he was getting.
“Ok guys! Calm down! Calm down!” Jaime and I couldn’t control our laughing because the screams wouldn’t even stop. Jaime came up behind me and whispered something in my ear. We all stood there until they finally decided they wanted to hear some music. “Alright everybody. We're Pierce the Veil! That's my brother back there on drums, his name is Mike. We got my boyfriend on bass to the right of me, his name is Jaime. And his best friend, Tony, on guitar to my left. This song is called Caraphernelia and we hope you like it. So here we go!” I nodded at Mike and he struck the first beat with his cymbals, which signaled Jaime and Tony to shred their guitars.
♪ Sunshine, there ain't a thing that you can do that's gonna ruin my night.
(But, there's just something about)
This dizzy dreamer and her bleeding little blue boy.
Licking your fingers like you're done and,
You've decided there is so much more than me.
And baby, honestly it's harder breathing next to you, I shake.
I brought a gun and as the preacher tried to stop me.
Hold my heart it's beating for you anyway.
What if I can't forget you?
I'll burn your name into my throat.
I'll be the fire that'll catch you.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
None of the colors ever light up anymore in this hole.
Nobody prays for the heartless.
Nobody gives another penny for the selfish.
You're learning how to taste what you kill now.
Don't mind me, I'm just reaching for your necklace.
Talking to my mom about this little girl from Texas.
What if I can't forget you?
I'll burn your name into my throat.
I'll be the fire that'll catch you.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
None of the colors ever light up anymore in this hole.
Just give her back to me.
You know I can't afford the medicine that feeds what I need.
So, baby, what if I can't forget you?
(What if I can't forget you?)
Collide invisible lips like a shadow on the wall,
And just throw, oh no.
You can't just throw me away.
So, what if I can't forget you?
I'll burn your name into my throat.
I'll be the fire that'll catch you.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
What if I don't even want to?
Oh, oh. Oh, oh. Oh. Oh, oh. Oh, oh, oh. Oh, oh. Oh, oh. Oh.
What if I can't forget you?
I'll burn your name into my throat.
I'll be the fire that'll catch you.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
None of the colors ever light up anymore in this hole.
Just give her back to me.
You know I can't afford the medicine that feeds what I need.
So, baby, what if I can't forget you?
(What if I can't forget you?)
I'd better learn to live alone.
What's so good about picking up the pieces?
What's so good about? What's so good about?
What's so good about picking up the pieces? ♪
We ended the song and people were silent. Dead silent; the audience and the judges. Five seconds later, we heard the first clap from a boy in the audience who wore a black beanie with an Asking Alexandria shirt; he stood to his feet. Three girls followed his actions and then more and more. They screamed and cheered for us. One of the judges even stood up and cheered us on.
“THANK YOU EVERYONE! VOTE FOR US! WE’RE PIERCE THE VEIL!” I wailed for the last time.
We ran off stage and went to the back. We got more yells and chants from everyone. We even had a girl come backstage and ask for our autographs. We were just so thrilled to see the reaction from the audience. It was unbelievable!
“Damn guys! You really did pull something out of your asses!” Jesse laughed, directing his statement towards Mike, only because Mike had to tell everyone at Kellin's club how badass we were.
“I’m impressed,” Kellin said with a straight face.
“It’s nothing swell at the moment. I know there are better songs to come,” I said with confidence.
~~~
We all went home and desparately had to wait until tomorrow for it to come in. I wanted to hang out with Jaime today but he’s working at Costco right now and then he has another part time job working with Caesar at a massage parlor.
Maybe I should go pay him a visit? No literally, I want fucking massage because that sounds so good right now. My back is killing me. If he can work his fingers on the bass, he better be able to work his fingers all over me. Full body massage or just my back? Nah...everything.
Notes
*title credit: Pierce the Veil's ritual thingie idk what it's called;) two minute warning idk..what are you guys thinking?;) do you know which bands will make it to the finals and pass that as well? leave me comments!
Would really like to see a sequel :)
7/4/15