California

The show was incredible. It was the perfect way to kick off the tour. I decided to warm up by taking photos of the opening bands, since I hadn’t taken any shots in a few weeks. Mallory Knox blew me away. I hadn’t listened to them before, and I was completely shocked. They had remarkable energy and Mikey’s voice was like liquid gold. They were unbelievably talented. PVRIS put on a good show as well, and Sleeping with Sirens did alright. The guys were amazing as usual, and every time Tony or Vic caught my eye they would make funny faces. I got many good pictures of all of the bands and I was really proud of myself and all of them, too.

Mike had suggested we all go out for a celebratory drink at a local bar. The guys in Mallory Knox were the only ones to agree, though. I’m excited because I haven’t been out drinking with the guys for a while. Plus, all of my new friends were quite the characters and I was looking forward to spending more time with them. I showered and let my naturally straight hair flow down my back. I put on my favorite red tank top on and a leather jacket over it, with a pair of skinny jeans as well.

“Sky, hurry up!” I heard Vic yell from outside of the bathroom. I looked myself over once more before I exited and grinned at him. I walked into the lounge and saw Jaime, Jess, Mike, Alysha, Tony, Erin, and Danielle sitting there. They all looked amazing.

Tony whistled at me and Danielle said, “You look beautiful! I love that jacket.” I grinned at her as we walked off of the bus.

“Thanks. You guys all look stunning as usual.” Erin and Jess linked arms with me and we headed over to Mallory’s bus. Tony knocked on their door and it opened within a few seconds to reveal James, who was dressed in a short-sleeved button down. He greeted us and the rest of the guys piled out after him. Mikey was wearing a t-shirt that had a liquor brand on it and a fancy gray jacket over it. He looked marvelous.

Once we started walking towards the bar, Jess and Erin walked ahead of me to walk next to the guys. I hung back since my feet were killing me from standing and taking pictures all night. Mikey noticed and slowed down to keep pace with me. He grinned at me, “You look lovely.”

I blushed and returned the smile. “You don’t look too bad, yourself.” He chuckled and we walked in silence for a few moments before he turned to me. “Aren’t you mad at Jaime?”

I looked at him confused. “What, why would I be?” He gestured in front of us to where Jess and Jaime were sneaking a kiss. I looked back at him. “Why would that bother me?”

“Aren’t you guys an item?” I looked at him for a few seconds before I started laughing hysterically. I had to stop to hold my gut. When I looked back up, he looked as confused as I had. “No! Jaime and Jess have been dating for years.”

A stunning smile made its way onto his face. “Sorry, it’s just you guys seemed really touchy.”

I shook my head as we started walking again. The rest of the group were out of sight by now. “All of us are really close. I’ve known them all for a really long time, so we’re just really comfortable around each other. Jaime is touchy with everyone, though.” He nodded his head and I noticed he stepped a little closer to me as we walked by a small apartment complex. I looked up and saw three middle-aged guys staring at us. I swallowed and stepped even closer to him. We were silent as we approached where they were standing and I reached into my pocket and gripped my keys in between my fingers.

“Hey baby!” one of them yelled. I tensed up and Mikey wrapped his arm around my shoulders. We ignored them and kept walking. “I said hey!” I picked up my pace, but Mikey stopped. He turned around and looked at him.

“You should be ashamed of yourself for disrespecting a woman like that. If I were you, I’d reevaluate my life choices, mate,” he said before he walked next to me again. We ignored the man yelling at us as we rounded the corner, the streets heavily lit and the bar in sight now. I released my grip on my keys and looked behind me and shuddered. I saw Mikey’s jaw clenched and nudged him, offering a small smile. “Thanks.” He returned it and nodded.

“I hate guys like that. It’s disgusting. Fuckin’ cunts.”

I smiled at him as we approached the bar. I saw Mike and Alysha standing outside and quickly whispered to him, “Don’t tell the guys, okay? They’ll overreact.” He nodded to me as we walked up to them.

“There you are! Did you duck behind a dumpster for a quickie?” Mike smirked as he put his cigarette to his lips. Mikey and I both blushed and looked away from each other.

Alysha smacked him on the arm. “Leave them alone.”

I smiled gratefully at her as we walked past them and into the bar. Music was playing, but luckily not too loud. I spotted the group in a corner at a long table. I pointed them out to Mikey and we made our way through the sea of people. I walked up to Tony and took some peanuts out of the bowl he was eating. He glared at me and I smiled.

“Where’d you guys go? You were right behind us,” Vic asked, taking a sip of his drink. I shrugged.

“My feet were killing me and Mikey was a gentleman and stayed with me so I wouldn’t have to walk alone.”

“Well thanks for walking with her, man,” Tony said and nodded his head.
“My pleasure.”

A pop song came over the speakers and Danielle’s face lit up. She dragged Vic to the dance floor, leaving room for Mikey and I to sit down. Soon Dave, Joe, and Jaime joined them. James, Erin, and Jess went to get more drinks. I reached over to get some more of Tony’s peanuts but he slapped my hand away.

“Ow!” I yelled and glared at him. He popped some peanuts in his mouth and grinned at me, making Sam and Mikey laugh. “You’re a bully, you know that?” He just shrugged. I looked over to Sam. “What are you drinking?”

“Jack Daniels,” he answered and took another sip. I reached my hand out to him.

“Can I have a drink?” He nodded and handed it to me. I took a drink and ignored the burning in my throat as I swallowed. I offered some to Mikey and he took a sip too before handing it back to Sam. While Tony was focusing on laughing at Dave and Vic dancing, I shot my hand across and grabbed a handful of peanuts. I looked over to Sam and Mikey.

“So, how many albums do you guys have out?”

“Two,” Sam answered and took another sip of his alcohol. “Our debut one is called Signals and our new one is Asymmetry.”

“You guys were incredible tonight. I was impressed,” I said. Tony got up and started to walk towards the dance floor before he stopped and turned around. He grabbed his peanuts and smiled at me before he walked away again. I giggled.

“Thank you. That means the world to us,” Mikey said. I noticed his thigh was touching mine when he could easily scoot over into the many empty seats, although I wasn’t complaining.

“I got some good pictures of your set tonight. I can edit them for you guys to post if you’d like.”

“Thank you, but we wouldn’t be able to pay you much,” Sam said.

I shook my head and smiled. “It’s on the house. It’s my way of welcoming you to the states and thanking you for not being douchebags.”

Mikey chuckled. “Not being douchebags?”

I shrugged and reached over, taking a sip of the drink Tony left behind. “Sometimes the bands we go on tour with aren’t very nice people and ruin the tour for me. I was afraid that you guys might be like that, but clearly you aren’t.”

“What bands have been rude to you?” Sam asked.

“Kellin has never been particularly nice to me, but we stay out of each other’s way for the most part. Alan from Of Mice & Men and Jack from All Time Low.”

“Kellin? He seemed alright to me,” Mikey commented.

“We’ve just never gotten along. It’s not a big deal, though. The nice bands outweigh the rude ones,” I said. I looked over to the dance floor and burst into laughter. Mikey and Sam followed my gaze and started laughing as well. Jaime and Dave were desperately trying to get Tony to dance, which meant Jaime was shaking his butt and his arms everywhere, making himself look like a fool.

“I can tell this tour is going to be fun,” Sam said. I smiled as he got up and walked over to Erin, Jess, and James, trying to help them carry the drinks.

“I’m craving oatmeal cookies,” I said out of the blue as I remembered how Vic was supposed to buy me some after he lost a bet, but he never did. Mikey chuckled and leaned back in his chair.

“Oatmeal cookies?”

I stared at him for a moment. “Do you have anything in England?”

He laughed. “At least we can make a cup of tea properly. You lot have no idea how to do it!”

I shook my head. “Come on, let’s go.” I stood up and grabbed his hand, pulling him out of his chair.

He looked at me strangely. “Where are we going?”

“I cannot let you live without trying some oatmeal cookies.” He chuckled, but let me lead him away. I caught Sam and Jaime’s eyes as we walked past them. They both wiggled their eyebrows at me and I rolled my eyes. “We’re going to get cookies,” I shouted. We walked out the doors and I dragged him quickly past Mike before he could say something inappropriate. As we got farther from the bar I observed that our hands were still interlocked. I blushed and dropped his hand.

“Wasn’t bothering me any,” Mikey said quietly as we walked. I bit my lip and we headed towards the gas station at the end of the street. Our arms brushed against each other as we walked and I shivered against the breeze, despite my jacket. Mikey noticed. “Would you like my jacket?” I shook my head.

“Positive? I wouldn’t want you to get cold, love.” A warm feeling coursed through my veins when he called me that and I smiled.

“I’m sure.” Despite my protests he removed his jacket and placed it over my shoulders. I finally gave in and slipped my arms in the sleeves. A pleasant musty scent filled my nostrils as I wrapped it around me.

“I don’t want you to be cold,” I said as we got closer to the 7-11 I had my eye on. He shrugged.

“I’ll be alright.” He held the door open for me when we arrived and I blushed and thanked him. The store was empty except for the cashier, who gave me a warm smile. I went over to the rack of cookies and began sifting through them.

“You guys have cheese sticks?” Mikey’s voice spoke up behind me. I looked over and he had picked up some string cheese from the fridge.

I smiled. “We’re getting those too.” I picked up a small box of oatmeal cookies and we walked over to the counter. We set everything down and I dug in my pocket for some money. I handed some to the cashier, who gave Mikey the change while I picked up our goodies. He held the door open for me once more as we walked out into the night. I took a seat on the curb next to some payphones and he followed suit. He was studying the coins.

“What’s this one?”

“That’s a quarter. It’s worth twenty-five cents,” I said as I used my keys to open the cookies.
He looked at it a few seconds longer before setting it down. “It looks nice.” I giggled and handed him a cookie.

I stared at him as he took a hesitant bite. His eyes got wide and he looked at me. “This is amazing!” I smiled at how cute he was when he talked with his mouth full and took a bite of my own cookie. We chewed in silence for a few moments before he exclaimed, “These are my new favorite things in the world.”

“I told you! Here, now try the cheese,” I said and handed him a stick. He opened it and took a bite out of it. I gasped and he whipped his head around and started at me. “You can’t eat it like that! It’s string cheese! You have to eat it like this,” I said as I tore a string off of his cheese and held it up to his mouth. He took it and chewed slowly as he stared into my eyes. I blushed and looked away.

After he finished chewing, he spoke quietly. “You’re really special. You know that?”

I looked up to find him still staring at me intently. “You’ve only known me for a day.”

“It doesn’t matter. I know you’re special.”

I smiled. “You are too.” I stared into his deep brown eyes for several seconds. I could feel his breath on my face as our faces got closer and closer.

“Can I kiss you?” he whispered, tucking a piece of my hair behind my ears. I was too nervous to say anything, so I just nodded. He closed the distance between us and tenderly pressed his lips to mine. Butterflies fluttered in my stomach and cupped my cheek with his hand. We stayed like that for what seemed like hours, though it could not have been more than a few seconds.

We pulled away slowly and he pressed his forehead to mine. “I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but I do like you a lot.”

“The feeling is mutual,” I whispered.

He flashed me a smile. “Would you fancy going on a date with me?”

“I’d love to.”

Notes